Wilted Rose
by Raphael Comet
Summary: A story revolving around a soldier gone rogue. Former Maj. Lucretia Ren, older sister to one of Raphael's instructors Carolyn Ren, defects from the military and becomes a freelance assassin. Main characters are OCs from my Simpler Times project.
1. Chapter 1 - Regret

After making contact with Rayff, Lucretia stood up, picking up the rifle and slinging it over her shoulder as she rose. She looked into the sky and raised her right hand, extending her middle finger in defiance. The satellite hovering overhead in orbit saw her gesture; the officers watching her were not amused.

"What in the world is she doing!? Why can't you get in contact with her!?" asked one of the officers in charge of the operation.

"She's deactivated her com. link, sir. She's gone dark," said an operator.

The officer was gripping the table firmly as he watched Lucretia on the monitor. "She's gone over the line. I want a kill order put out for Maj. Lucretia Ren on the double! She's not going to get away with this."

Lucretia looked down at the camp and made her way down to it, sliding down the side of the dune. Before continuing towards the camp, she walked over to Devan's body to check for extra supplies.

"I'm sorry, but it's nothing personal. It was either you or my love, Rayff. And I chose him." She looked one last time at her deceased partner before walking off.

As she approached the private encampment, a couple sentries raised their weapons at her as she got nearer. "Hold it. Let me see your hands!"

"Put your guns down. I'm on your side idiots," said Lucretia as she took off her helmet, attacking it to her utility belt.

"Lucretia? I didn't recognize you in your uniform. Sorry 'bout that," said one of the pirate sentries.

She casually passed them by as they lowered their rifles. She headed into camp in search of Rayff, the pirate leader and her boyfriend. The pirates were almost done cutting through the safes, so most of them were hustling about, making preparations to load the loot and escape.

Rayff spotted Lucretia and made his way over to her. "Hey, baby. How are things on your end?"

"I've already dealt with the other Rose. And as for the backup sniper team, they won't get here in time. Trust me."

"What about our exit plan?"

"Shouldn't be a problem, so long as we have the hostage; they won't make a move. The nighttime sniper incursion was their only solution. Now that the mission was botched, they're out of alternatives."

"Good. Very good. Everything is going according to plan. This is our biggest heist yet, so we can't afford any loose ends. Since you've done your part, you can relax in the ship while we loot the ship." He gave her a kiss before leaving to supervise the last stage of the heist.

She watched in admiration as he headed into the downed civilian transport, her heart a flutter from being in his presence again. Feeling the sweat accumulating on her forehead, she decided to head into the pirate ship to take a shower and unwind.

She didn't have too much trouble finding her room since she was somewhat already familiar with the ship. Entering the room she shared with Rayff, she vividly remembered every aspect of it, despite only being in it once before. She leaned her two assault rifles and Devan's sniper rifle against the wardrobe and headed into the bathroom to get cleaned up. She took off her utility belt with the helmet still attached and dropped it to the floor, followed by her gloves and tactical vest.

After loosening her hair, she stared blankly into the mirror. "What is wrong with me? I did what I had to do, didn't I? It was her or him. Damn the military for forcing me into this position."

She continued to disrobe and took a long, hot shower to get her head straight. After she was cleaned up and dressed in new clothes, she headed outside to check on Rayff's progress. The pirates had broken through, nearly completely transferring all of the treasure over to their ship. She started to grow wide-eyed as she watched cart after cart filled with precious valuables being loaded into the cargo bay. She found Rayff inside the civilian transport filling the last cart.

"Almost done?" she asked, entering the ship's vault.

Rayff emptied the last tray of jewels into the cart. "Just about."

"And I hope you haven't forgotten my share of the cut, right, hun?"

"Don't worry, babe. You'll get yours. We couldn't have gotten this far without you."

"That's right, and don't forget it," she said with a playful smile.

"Of course, darling. Now head outside and make sure everyone's loaded everything into the ship. We're getting outta here once we load this cart."

Lucretia nodded and did as she was told. Once Rayff had loaded the last cart, he headed towards the bridge for the final launch preparations.

"So, Lucretia, is there anything I should know about the military's plan of action before we lift off?"

"Not really. Like I said before, they won't make any hostile actions while we have hostages. They were watching this site from orbit via satellite, so they know we have hostages onboard. By the way, do you have the decoy drones I told you to get?"

"They were a bit pricey, but I got em'. Are they really necessary?"

"Believe me, they're quite necessary. Don't worry; with this take, you should be able to get your money back and then some."

"You think there are ships in orbit?"

"I don't think there are any ships near us, but you never know what's lurking out there. So if there is something out there, they'll be on your ass once you jump if you don't have the decoys. Let's just hope they don't get lucky and choose the right signature."

Rayff gave the order and told his pilot to lift off. Once in orbit, the ship deployed several drones which flew away in random directions; they were meant to throw off any tailing military vessels that might be tracking them.

Once the ship was a considerable distance away from the planet, they jumped into hyperspace toward an outer colony to enjoy their spoils.

#

It had been a month since Lucretia defected and things were already starting to fall apart. "You're freakin' unbelievable!" Lucretia grabbed the nearest object at hand, which happened to be a remote control, and hurled it at Rayff. She was covering her bare body with the bed sheets as she sat on the bed.

"Hey, give me a break, babe. I've given you some of your take already." Rayff was putting on his shirt with his back against the door, ready to leave if she got any more hostile.

"I want my _entire_ cut you prick!" She picked up another object and threw it at him.

He dodged it and opened the bedroom door, hiding behind it for protection. "Now I'm going to leave now, so while you're still in here, I want you to cool off, okay? I'll check in on you later." He shut the door and locked it from the outside.

Lucretia was furious with Rayff and got out of bed to confront him, taking the sheets with her to cover her body. She tried opening the door, but to her dismay, it was indeed locked. She was about to head back to the bed when she heard voices in the hallway. There was an open air vent on top of the door, so Lucretia found a chair to stand up on to get a better vantage point.

"Having trouble with Lucretia there?" asked Fau, one of Rayff's pirate crew.

"She's just being stubborn. She wants her _entire_ cut."

"Then why not give it to her? We all got out share already."

Rayff scoffed at the suggestion. "Do you know how much she wants? She wants twenty-five percent of the entire cut. The _entire_ cut! Do you know how much that is? Much more than she deserves."

"But her role was important to the success of the heist. I mean, she killed her partner for you man. She loves you dude."

"So?"

"So, don't you love her as well?"

Rayff raised an eyebrow. "Pssh…love her?" I love her as much as I love getting stabbed in the gut, and then choked to death."

"Man, that's harsh, dude."

"Yeah well, she has a hot bod and all, since she's the soldier type, and she's good in bed, but she's just an asset, an asset I used to get the job done."

"Well if you don't want her, can I have her?"

Rayff scowled and slapped him upside the head. "She's still mine idiot. I never said that I didn't want her. C'mon, let's get something to eat. All this stress is making me hungry." He and Fau left the living quarters and headed to the mess hall for some breakfast.

On the other side of the door, Lucretia was heated with rage and fury. She moved away from the door and meandered back onto the bed, wrapping the sheets around her as she sat, thinking.

'_Used me. He used me! That rat puck meat head dared to lie to my face! Well…I'll just wait her, and when he opens that door, we'll see how much he really likes getting choked and stabbed to death.'_ She raised her chin and started laughing maniacally, eagerly awaiting her revenge.

After a few hours, Rayff decided to head back to the bedroom to check on Lucretia. "Okay, Lucretia, cry baby time over. Let's go and get some food."

Little did he know, Lucretia was hiding behind the door, waiting for him. When he stepped inside, she punched him in the jaw, knocking him out. She quickly dragged him into the room and shut the door before anyone noticed.

When Rayff regained consciousness fifteen minutes later, he found himself gagged and tied to a bed with his wrists and ankles tied to each of the bed's four corners. The only light illuminating the room came from a small lamp on the desk; a shadowed figure sat at the desk with their back to him. He started to panic and tried to break free. The noise caused by his struggle alerted Lucretia, who was over at her desk sharpening her knife.

She stood up and walked over to Rayff. "So…you're awake?"

Rayff stopped to see who his captor was. He was surprised once he saw Lucretia before him. He tried to talk, but the gag muffled his words.

"Don't bother trying to speak. No one will hear you," said Lucretia as she waved her newly sharpened combat knife. She moved on the bed and straddled his waist, brandishing her knife in front of his face.

"Right now I bet you're wondering why you're in the predicament you're in, right? Rayff remained silent. Annoyed at the lack of a response, she smacked him across the face. "Well?" He angrily responded in a muffled voice. "I'll take that as a yes."

She leaned towards his face, caressing his head. "Allow me to refresh your memory then. Does _'she's just an asset'_ ring bell?" Immediately, Rayff's eyes widened as the fear gripped him. "Oh, so now you remember. What about _'much more than she deserves'_, remember that? I know, how 'bout _'I love her as much as I love getting choked and stabbed to death'_?" She slowly cut his shirt open with her knife. Rayff's pulse began to increase quickly as his chest rose up and down rapidly. His heart beat furiously and his breathing became erratic as her knife reached just below his chin.

Sneering, Lucretia grabbed his throat with her left hand and readied her knife over his chest with her right. "How dare you use me. How dare you make me kill my friend in the name of _love_. You will pay for your…HUBRIS!" She raised her knife and plunged it straight down into his flesh, cutting downwards starting at his heart. She tightened her grip on his throat, stifling the struggling noises he tried to spurt out. Rayff's eyes were wide open with horror as he watched the blade cut down his torso. A large grin was growing on Lucretia's face as she continued to force the knife further. After a few tense moments of pure agony, Rayff breathed his last breath, his head tilting to the side with eyes still wide open.

Lucretia loosened her grip on his throat and rubbed her hand from grasping so hard. After regaining her composure, she withdrew her knife from his body and wiped it clean on his tattered shirt. She sheathed her weapon and got off the bed, looking one last time at Rayff's corpse with a look of disgust.

'_Now for the rest of the crew.'_ She walked over to the wardrobe and got dressed in her Crimzon Rose combat uniform. She thought that it was the best suited attire to fight in since she was already accustomed to it. Once she was clothed, she retrieved her suppressed assault rifle, the same one she used when she was still a Crimzon Rose. Since she had killed the pirates' leader, there was no turning back. She checked her gear and loaded her weapons as she approached the bedroom door.

Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and stepped through. It was late in the evening and most of the crew was already asleep. Lucretia decided to start off with the rooms near hers and Rayff's, since they were personal rooms and would make killing the occupants easier to deal with. As she entered each room, she decided that simplicity would be best and didn't try anything fancy. Instead, she just slit everyone's throat with a single deep slice. Since she knew the exact number of pirates in Rayff's crew, she simply subtracted those she'd already killed from the total to see how many were left. Five. That was how many were left after she was through with the living quarters. She figured that the majority of those remaining were in the lounge/commons area, so she cautiously headed there, checking all the miscellaneous rooms on the way for any stragglers.

As she came to her destination, she waited behind a wall and peeked around the corner to see how many targets there were. Three enemies confirmed. Not everyone, but most of them. She readied her assault rifle and planned her shots to catch them completely off guard. She raised her rifle and turned the corner. Three shots, three thuds. Lucretia scanned the area with her rifle raised and advanced, taking slow, cautious steps. _'All clear.'_ Two remained.

She had a feeling the remaining two were in the cockpit area, so that was her next stop. She traversed the rest of the ship and was almost to the cockpit. As she walked down the corridor towards the pilot's cabin, a pirate ambushed her en route. He forcefully knocked her rifle away and maneuvered behind her, wrapping one of his arms around her neck.

'_I must be getting rusty. I should've seen that one coming,'_ thought Lucretia as her assailant tightened his grip. She struggled to get an arm free and elbowed the man in the stomach. He reeled backwards as he clutched his gut in pain. Lucretia moved away from him and drew her sidearm from her tac-vest, planting a single round in his head.

As she was about to holster her weapon, the door to the cockpit opened. "What's all the commotion?" asked the pilot as he exited the cockpit, his pistol in hand. Lucretia acted without hesitation and aimed her sidearm, shooting the man twice in the chest. She didn't want to go for a headshot because she didn't want to risk missing and hitting anywhere in the cockpit behind him. Unfortunately for her, shooting him in the chest gave the guy an extra few moments of life. He randomly shot off a round before he died which grazed Lucretia's right thigh. She cursed to herself as she leaned against the wall to take the pressure off her injured leg. Zero remained. _'That's the last of them.'_ She sighed and limped back to the commons area. She plopped down onto a random chair and just sat, unsure of what to do.

'_Now what do I do? I've killed my only love, I've killed the entire crew, and I'm a wanted fugitive. There's nowhere to go. No friends. My parents certainly won't take me in. And Carolyn, not a chance. There's nothing left for me anymore.'_ She took her sidearm and pressed it against the side of her head. _'Is this my only option, to end it all? No. There must be something worth living for. But what?'_

She started to squeeze the trigger, but then, she heard a voice in her head - a familiar voice, a memory. She was remembering a moment a few months ago, just before Devan transferred to her training assignment.

#

Devan fired another shot down range, hitting the target dead on. "Looks like the rifle is finally zeroed in." She loaded another magazine into the rifle and took aim. She and Lucretia were at an outside, long-range firing range, practicing sniping at extremely long distances.

Before she was about to continue firing, Lucretia spoke. "Rook, why did you join the military?"

Devan was caught off guard by her sudden question, unsure of what to say. "Um, it's a long story, ma'am."

"I've got time, sergeant."

"I'm sorry for asking, but why do you want know, ma'am?"

"I just want to get to know my partner better."

Devan moved her focus away from her rifle's scope and towards Lucretia. "Well, it all began during my childhood."

"That far back?"

"Yeah. Well, I was involved with the military all my life since I was a Prodigy, but the turning point that really drove me to continue my military career mostly began with my parents. My mom was an army infantry officer serving with the expeditionary forces. My dad was a deadbeat, alcoholic construction worker. When my mom died in combat, my dad started drinking heavily again. When my mom was alive, he went to rehab and had been clean ever since. But when she died, he had no reason to continue being clean. So as you can imagine, I went through some tough times with being constantly drunk all the time."

"He only stopped drinking because your mom?"

"Mostly. She forced him to. Anyway, I was doing okay in school and was allowed to remain in the Prodigy program on economic assistance, since my mom died. But after the school day, I always hated going home. I would get bossed around, beat, and abused. If I said anything, I would get beat harder. So I didn't say anything. I was growing fed up with my life at home with my dad. Then one day during the end of my senior year, some army recruiters came by to get some of the students interested in joining the Scarlet Berets after graduating. I was intrigued by their displays and wanted to see what they had to offer, but then I remembered the argument I had with my dad the night before."

"About what?"

"What I'd be doing after I graduated. He didn't want me to enlist, but to instead find a job close to home to support his alcoholism. The only reason he let me stay in the Prodigy program was because we were getting financial aid, in which he used whatever was leftover to buy his alcohol. So when I graduated, no more financial aid would be coming in, and thus no more alcohol money. I dreaded what my life would be if it came to that, and so I made a decision. I was going to enlist and cut my ties once and for all from him once I graduated. So, I went over to the Scarlet Berets and learned all I could. So for the last remaining days, I coped with my life at home. And then on the day of my graduation, I gathered all the money I could and the few possessions I wanted to keep, and went to the enlistment office once the graduation party was over. I snuck away after the ceremony and caught a transport away from the city.

"And then the rest is history, right?"

"Yeah. I enlist. Train with the Scarlet Berets. And then I end up here, with the Crimzon Roses. And I haven't contacted my dad every since."

"Do you regret any of it?"

Devan smiled, something Lucretia didn't expect she would do. "Not one bit. The decision to enlist was probably the best decision I had ever done in my life. It finally allowed me to lead a new life."

"A new life?"

"Yes. Leaving home allowed me to make my own decisions and to not worry about anything else but myself and my job. No more drunk dad and problems at home. A new life."

#

Lucretia paused and as she withdrew her finger from the trigger, she repeated the last three words in her head. _'A new life. A new life? A new life! Yes! Why didn't I think of this before? I can finally start living now! No longer do I have to uphold my loyalty to my parents, the military, or deadbeat boyfriend, but to myself, and only myself! But Devan…'_

Realizing she still had a gun to her head, she threw it across the room and cried, letting out a loud, sorrowful yell. _'But Devan…she wasn't supposed to be there. She wasn't supposed to be there! If I was paired with some random Crimzon, this would have gone a lot smoother, or at least, the betrayal would have been easier.' _She buried her face in her hands as she cried. _'But I had to choose. I was a fool. Blinded by love and choosing gaddamn Rayff over my one and true friend, Devan. She was one of the only people that truly understood me, and now she's dead, killed by my hand. Oh Devan, I should have told you; you would've understood me.'_

She sat silently for a few moments before getting up. She limped over to the refrigerator in the kitchen and grabbed a Mountain Dew: Code Red, leaning against the counter after closing the fridge. _'I'm sorry Devan.'_ She popped open the can, the escaping gas hissing at her. "To you…" She poured the first bit on the floor and took a long, refreshing gulp, sighing with relief.

As she placed her drink on the counter, she bumped into something on the ground with her foot. Looking down, she saw her sidearm lying next to her and bent down to retrieve it. "Frickin' a." A sharp pain ran up her leg as she picked it up. Remembering her wound from before, she holstered the gun and pulled out her med-kit to address it. She applied a healing ointment to the injury and wrapped it in a bandage.

'_So not what? I already stopped myself from blowing my brains out, so what's next?'_ She walked around and surveyed the carnage of dead bodies she left around the room. There were poker chips scattered around the floor.

'_Must've been playing poker when I dropped in.'_ She walked over to the table and picked up one of the chips. As she held the piece of plastic, something clicked in her brain and she smiled deviously to herself. She placed it back on the table and spun it around.

"What's next you ask?" She watched the poker chip spin on the table until it stopped, resting on a pile of money in the center. "If I'm going to start living for myself, I'm going to need some money, lots of money."

She left the table and headed back to her bedroom. Entering the room, she walked straight to her bed which still had Rayff's bloodied corpse still on it. Completely unemotional by the grisly scene, she started rummaging through the clothes on his person.

'_Where is it? I know he has it. Ah, here it is.'_

She fully opened his shirt and gripped a key on a necklace located around his neck. Prying it from his neck, she took the key and left the room. As she walked through the corridors, she increased the speed of her steps as she went along. In just a few moments, she was jogging through the hallways with an eager smile on her face. She came to a halt outside a large steel door and readied the key.

"This is it, the motherload."

After fitting the key home, and with a turn to the right, the door opened which left Lucretia standing in awe. The room she had just unlocked was the pirates' loot room. All of the loot gathered from raids and heists were kept there until it was distributed amongst the crew. Inside the room were racks filled with crates containing items ranging from jewels and jewelry, to straight up bundles of hundred dollar bills.

Lucretia walked through the aisles, eyeing and touching all of the valuable items within. "Most of the loot from the Grimestone Heist is still here. I'm guessing…half, maybe? Looks like there's some leftovers from previous jobs here as well. This is definitely going to last me awhile." She turned her attention away from her treasure and stood for a moment, deep in thought about how she was going to continue.

'_So now what? I've got a ship full of loot and dead pirates. Do I pilot the ship back to port in an outer-rim colony and hope no one ask any questions? No. That's too simple; I can do better than that. Hmm…maybe…'_ She exited the room and headed to the ship's cargo bay/hanger.

"Now we're getting somewhere." In the hanger, there was a smaller ship, a transport they used for traveling from the ship in orbit to the planet's surface. It was a moderate-sized ship with plenty of cargo space, and after she made a few adjustments, there would be even more room. She opened the outer hatch and inspected the ship. _'Yeah, this will do perfectly.'_

After she was done clearing out the transport, she started loading all of the valuables onto the ship. Starting with the loot room, she loaded crate after crate, each filled with money, jewels, and valuables, into her ship. She then went back to her room to gather up her belongings. She packed her clothes and personal items into duffel bags, making sure it was tightly packed to conserve space.

As she was going through her things, the ship shuddered, making Lucretia loose her balance. "What the frick was that?"

As she put down her box and headed to the hallway, another quake forced her to brace herself against the wall. Regaining her balance, she sprinted for the cockpit to see what was happening before the next shock occurred. Taking a seat in one of the seats in the cockpit, she looked out to see what the problem was. "Great…a debris field."

She hastily looked around the cockpit's consoles and piloting panels, scanning over the numerous buttons and switches. She started pressing random buttons with hopes that it would help somehow. "Frick! I'm a foot soldier, not a pilot." As she looked out the window, she saw a large piece of space rock out in front of the ship. "Um! Uh! I guess I have to go in manually." She grabbed the joystick and throttle and tried to turn, but neither budged. She pulled on them harder, but still nothing happened. Panicking, she jerked on them harder and harder. "Why won't you move!?" She let go of the controls and slumped back in the seat.

"Frick…" She closed her eyes and gripped the armrests of the chair. "So this is the end, is it? Man…karma's a bitc*." After a few moments, the ship started to tilt. Expecting to have collided with the asteroid already, Lucretia opened an eye to see what was happening. Just as she opened her eye, she saw the large mass pass just out of sight of the cockpit's window. She opened both eyes and peered out into space. The ship was moving on its own, evading the asteroids with ease. She looked around the cabin and saw that the autopilot had been engaged. _'Whoa…I must've triggered it when I randomly started pushing buttons. No wonder they call me Lucky. Damn, I need to get off this ship ASAP.'_

Sighing with relief, she got up and left the cockpit. As she walked out, she noticed her assault rifle from earlier that she had dropped. She knelt down to retrieve, and as she moved closer to the ground, a glimmer from the dead body lying next to the gun caught her eye. Looking over, she reached for the man's wrist and admired the golden watch fastened securely around it.

"Hmm…that's a nice watch you got there," she said, removing the watch from his wrist and pocketing it. She paused before standing back up and looked the body over. "What else do you have, hmm?" After scrounging through the pockets, she acquired a sidearm, a knife, two pistol magazines, and fifty-seven dollars from his wallet, along with a few IDs and bank cards. Putting all of the dead man's possessions on her person, she looked over at another dead body nearby._ 'I think I'm on to something here. I'm pretty sure all those pirate scum have loads of cash on their person, not to mention all the stuff in their rooms and trunks. And there's plenty of stuff throughout the ship worth a pretty penny. I've got time, and there's still plenty of room in the transport for all this stuff. Yup, looks like I can't leave just yet.' _She scooted over and started looting the second body in the hallway.

As she continued to loot the rest of the ship, she only took items of value. Her focus was on items like: guns, ammunition, electronics, appliances, tools, clothing, jewels, etc. She scrounged through every nook and cranny of the pirates' rooms and personal quarters for anything she could sell. She was very thorough with her work. Being the greedy and materialistic person she was, she checked every drawer, opened every box, and sifted through every container. She even raided the kitchen area of its coffee maker and microwave.

On her way back to the cargo bay with the last few boxes, she heard voices in the distance. Putting the boxes down, she drew her sidearm from her tac-vest and listened for the voices again.

'_I'm pretty sure I heard voices, but I'm also pretty sure all the pirates are dead.'_ She took a few steps with her he pistol raised. She heard the voices again; this time they were louder and clearer. Lucretia proceeded towards the source of the voices. She came to an iron door and pressed her ear against it. The voices started up again and she was sure whoever the voices belonged to was behind that door. She raised her pistol and prepared to storm the room. Turning the knob slowly, she kicked open the door and proceeded in, her gun poised and ready to fire.

There were shrieks of fright as the people inside turned to see Lucretia barge in, fully clothed in combat gear and with a weapon drawn. Seeing the unarmed civilians behind metal bars, she lowered her gun. _'Hmm…they must've taken hostages again during the last raid.'_

One of the prisoners, a young woman dressed in a civilian pilot's uniform, approached the wall of steel bars. "You're a soldier. Are you here to rescue us?"

Lucretia was surprised by her question. _'Rescue? Oh yeah, I'm still in my uniform. They must think I'm here to help them. What should I do? Kill them? No. I'm not a cold-hearted killer that kills for no reason. I'll leave 'em here till I figure out what to do with them.' _

She walked into the room and approached the captives. "It's still not safe out there yet. Wait here till I come back." The pilot was about to say something, but Lucretia left before she could finish. _'Now what? I've got civilians I have to deal with now. Great. Let's just finish loading everything and then I'll deal with them.'_

She finished packing the ship and went back to the commons area for a bite to eat before leaving. _'I'm surprised I'm still on this ship. But what do I do when I leave? Huh, haven't thought that far yet. Hmm…well, the outer colonies are the obvious place to go since I'm still an outlaw. Frick, that's right. I still am an outlaw. Gaddamnit. Wherever I go, they'll be after me. I should've taken Rayff's advice and faked my death when I still had the chance.'_ Lucretia paused and had another brilliant idea. _'Actually, it's still not too late to fake my death. I can overload the ship's reactor and make my escape in my ship. And as for witnesses, those civilians just made themselves useful.'_

She got up and made preparations for her escape. Once everything was in place, she went back for the hostages. She psyched herself up and played her part as she entered the brig. "It's all clear, but you all need to hurry." She approached the prisoners in a panicked manner.

"Why? What's going on?" asked one of the prisoners.

"The pirates overloaded the ship's reactor before I could get to them. It can blow any minute. Stand back!" She pulled out her sidearm and shot at the lock on the prison door. Once the lock was off, she pried open the prison door and led prisoners out of their cell. "Stay close keep up! There's not much time left."

"Where are you taking us!?" asked the female pilot.

"An escape pod. The ship has an escape pod for you to use. I've already stocked it with food and supplies to keep you alive until rescue finds you," said Lucretia.

"An escape pod? What about your ship, the one you used to board with?" asked one of the prisoners.

"I didn't come by ship. I snuck on the last time they made port," said Lucretia. The group arrived at the escape pod and Lucretia started loading them in.

"C'mon. Get on! It's going to blow soon!" said the female pilot.

"No can do. Someone needs to stay behind to activate the launch sequence," said Lucretia with a faint smile. _'Damn, this hero stuff is really starting to get on my nerves.'_

"Is there no way to start the launch remotely?" asked one of the prisoners.

"I'm afraid not. As a Cornerian soldier, it is my duty to protect its people." She handed the female pilot her combat helmet and military ID. "My name is Major Lucretia Ren. Please tell them what happened here." Before the pilot could say another word, Lucretia pushed her into the escape pod and shut the hatch. And with one last smile, she launched the pod into space.

Once the pod was gone, Lucretia let out a heavy sigh and headed to the hanger bay to leave the ship as well. "Urgh, that was so annoying. Being the good guy really sucks. How in the world can they do all that sincerely and freely? Whatever I'm outta here." She boarded the ship and piloted out of the hanger bay.

"This looks far enough." She reached into her pocket and took out a remote detonator linked to explosives on the ship's reactors. "Kaboom…" Once she pushed the button, the entire ship behind her erupted in flames as it tore apart into millions of pieces. She activated her ship's hyperdrive and headed towards the outer-rim colonies before anyone arrived at the scene.


	2. Chapter 2 - A New Life

"Well…I'm glad that's over with." She reclined in the pilot's seat, letting out a sigh of relief as the ship's engines cooled down after being in hyperdrive. In the distance, but still visible through the cockpit's window, was the outer-rim planet Neonia, an independent planet once under the control of the VCG. Lucretia chose that particular planet because she was most familiar with it and had contacts and assets already in place there. It was also a prime choice because it was notorious for being a planet of vice, so she thought she'd have a better chance of not being caught or noticed by the authorities. Her first order of business was to get a new identity, since she was a wanted criminal by the Cornerian government. Even though there was a good chance that she'd be reported as dead by the prisoners she saved, she still wanted to make sure no one would be sticking their nose in her business.

Once the ship was ready, she programmed the autopilot to take the ship to one of the cities on the planet's surface. During the ride, she changed out of her Crimzon Rose uniform and into street clothes. She wrapped a bandanna around the bottom half of her face and wore a black baseball cap to cover her hair. When she made her way back to the cockpit, the ship was already landing at an empty spot in a public landing pad. Lucretia checked her pistol and holstered it before heading to the ship's outer hatch.

She stepped onto the landing pad and walked toward the payment console, checking her surroundings to make sure no scoundrels were around to jump her. The console was located next to the walkway leading toward the terminal building adjacent to the landing pad. Approaching the machine, she took out her wallet and used cash to pay for parking. She could not use her debit card since it was tied to her old identity, which could give her away as being still alive.

When the transaction was complete, three mechanical arms attached to the flight pad secured restraints to the ship's landing gears. The restraints were connected to the landing pad which prevented the ship from being stolen or piloted without the owner's code to remove the restraints. Once her ship and its contents were secure, she headed inside the terminal to catch a ride to a nearby shopping mall to change her appearance, boarding one of the metro transports heading into the city. She continued to scan her surroundings in the car for anything suspicious. She didn't make it look obvious, only using passing glances and reflections to look people over. Everybody in the car didn't look any more sketchy than normal on an outer-rim world.

Arriving at the shopping center's platform, Lucretia disembarked and looked for a map of the mall. The interior of the large structure had a worn and aged aesthetic to it. To her, it seemed that maintenance and upkeep hadn't taken place in quite some time.

Checking a map located on a round display in the middle of the entrance, she looked for the appropriate vendors to get her appearance changed. _'Okay, what's first?'_ She looked down the list of stores and noticed one close by named "Cosma's Cosmetics". _'Well, it's worth a shot.'_ She navigated the mall and arrived at the shop. She noticed that it was one of the cleaner stores in the mall, so that was a good sign. She stepped inside and browsed what the store had to offer.

The shop owner noticed Lucretia at the front counter and walked over to help her. "Welcome. What can I do for you?"

She looked away from the board and towards the shop owner. "I'm looking to get my hair color changed as well as my eye color. Can you do that?"

"Sure. It will be a bit pricey though."

"Price is of no concern. But are you any good? I better get my money's worth."

The shop owner scoffed at Lucretia's doubt. "Any good? I service many people a week. You won't find a better cosmetic boutique in all of Bower City. I think I can handle a simple hair and eye color change."

"Good."

"If you're ready, I can take you now if you want?"

"Sure."

"The name's Cosma by the way," she said, outstretching her hand to shake Lucretia's.

She was about to respond with her real name, but caught herself. She quickly thought of another name to use off the top of her head. "Devan. My name's Devan." She returned Cosma's handshake firmly.

"Nice to meet you. Please, follow me." She directed Lucretia back into the boutique. "So, what colors were you thinking of for your hair and eyes?" She handed Lucretia a card that had all the available colors to choose from.

Lucretia took a seat in a barber's chair that Cosma led her to. "Black for my hair, and for my eyes? How 'bout red. Red will work."

"Black? How about a nice blue? Or a deep pink for some contrast?"

Lucretia gave her a straight-forward look. "Black."

"Okay, the customer knows best." She had her remove her cap and bandana and went about carrying out her appearance changes. The dying of her hair was the easiest part, even if it was a deep root color change. It allowed her hair to remain the current color even if it grew much longer. The fabrication of her contacts was the difficult part for Cosma. Getting the right shade of red and the contact size for Lucretia's eyes took an hour or so. Lucretia also took awhile getting accustomed to putting in and taking out the contacts, which added to the length of the procedures. She wasn't used to contacts since she didn't use them, but she got the hang of it eventually.

When they were done, they went back to the front counter to deal with the bill. "Okay dear, that will be one-hundred and fifty credits." Lucretia nodded and opened up her wallet. "Wow, that's a lot of bills there," said Cosma, peeking into the wallet. "Where'd you get all that?"

"It's best if you don't know." Lucretia handed over the money to pay for her visit.

"Kay. Kay. A gal's gotta do whatever it takes to get paid. I understand."

Lucretia put away her wallet, giving her a puzzled look. After paying Cosma for her services, she made her way out of the boutique. _'That was…incredibly easy. I thought that this would be the hard part. All right, time to get my I.D.'_ She put on her cap and bandana, just to remain incognito until she received her new documents. She went back to the public transport platform to catch a ride to another part of the city. She knew of a person that forged official documents. She and Rayff visited him on several occasions to obtain fake I.D.s for heists and other jobs.

The ride took her to the "bad" part of the city, but luckily for her, she was already familiar with the surrounding area. She walked down the city's dirty sidewalks, riddled with cigarette butts and garbage, and entered the small shop where the forger was. The shop was a façade to mask the whole forgery business.

The bell attached to the door rung as Lucretia opened the door. The shop owner, an old dog by the name of Joe, looked up from his magazine to greet the customer. "What do you want?"

Lucretia walked towards the front counter and confronted the shop owner. "I need some fake papers and a new I.D."

Joe gave her an impassive glance. "What are you talking about, woman? I sell antiques, so what you see is what I got."

"What's the matter? Don't recognize me?" She removed her cap and bandana from her face.

Joe looked her over, but nothing registered in his head. "Listen, if you're not going to buy anything, get the h*** out."

Lucretia frowned and took out one of her old I.D.s "It's me, you old geezer. Lucretia. Rayff's gal." She cringed when she had to mention being Rayff's "gal" to jog the old man's memory.

Joe looked closer and started to recognize her. "Lucretia, huh? I didn't recognize you with your new hair and eye color."

"Well, I was going for a new look. Anyway, I need some documents made for my new identity."

"New identity? You and Rayff doing another job? Surprised he's not here to get the documents himself."

Lucretia instantly remembered the grisly scene of Rayff's bloodied corpse lying in her bedroom. "It's a secret, but trust me. It's worth it."

"Why don't you come on back and we'll get your documents written up." Lucretia went around the counter and followed Joe into the backroom. "So what kind of documents will you be needing?"

"Everything. I need as many documents as you can give me."

"All documents, huh. Well, you know the drill. Let me get you a form to fill out with your identity's information, just so all the documents are consistent." He shuffled through some papers on his desk and found the empty questionnaires. He handed one of them to Lucretia along with a pen. "I'll prep the documents and get my camera ready while you fill it out." She nodded as Joe opened a hatch on the floor, revealing a secret room where he conducted his forgery operations.

Lucretia sat down in a chair and looked at the first blank on the form: name. She hadn't thought of a new name for herself and took a minute or two to think it over. _'A name? Name. Name. Need a name. Hmm, well, I used Devan's name already as my first name. It's a nice name and I like how it sounds. And I guess it would be a good gesture towards her to use her name. Now for the last name. I don't know…it's got to be good.'_ She looked around the room for some inspiration. Her gaze came upon a pair of red, plastic dice on the desk. _'Luck. Devan Luck. I like the sound of that.' _She filled in the blank and continued with the rest of the form.

When she was done, she handed Joe the form and got her picture taken for the I.D.s. As Joe worked on her documents, Lucretia waited out in the shop. An hour later, Joe finished up the last document and called for her to come to the secret room under his shop. As she got up from her seat, she switched the sign on the front door from "open" to "closed" before heading down.

Sliding down the ladder into the secret room, Joe handed over all the newly forged documents. "Okay, here's everything."

"Everything?"

"Everything. I have your new driver's license, pilot's license, birth certificate, everything in-between. And it's all Virgo Tetrian, just like you specified." He handed her a manila envelope, but kept his grip on it as Lucretia tried to take it, stretching out his other hand. "My fee?" She scowled and reached into her wallet, pulling out the old man's money. She handed over the bills and took the envelope from him. "Pleasure doing business with you," said Joe, turning around to count the bills.

"You're welcome." She drew her sidearm and shot Joe straight through the back of the head, splattering his brains all over a file cabinet. His body shuddered and fell to the floor. She holstered her weapon and retrieved the money scattered along the ground. Being the greedy person she was, she found a random bag and looted his secret room and dead body for anything valuable.

Spotting the surveillance monitors on a table, she went over and made sure all of the security footage was deleted, even going as far as destroying all the monitors and consoles so nothing could be accessed. Once she was done, she climbed the ladder back up to the shop and made sure the hatch was fully hidden. Looking around, she began looting again and hit the register and Joe's personal quarters upstairs, above the shop. After she was satisfied, she left the store, shutting off the lights and taping a piece of paper to the front window which said "On vacation. Don't know when I'll be back."

Remembering the time left on the parking meter, Lucretia headed back to her ship to add more time. When she got back, she paid upfront in cash for twenty-four hours so she didn't have to worry about parking. The hour was getting late, so she just stayed in the ship for the rest of the evening. She dropped the bag from Joe's shop on the floor as she slumped down in the pilot's seat. She found some food leftover from Rayff's ship and had a quick meal before falling fast asleep.

#

Lucretia awoke to the annoying buzz of her digital watch's alarm. She switched it off, patting her head due to a slight headache brought on from drinking an entire bottle of wine the night before. "Man, I haven't done that since Devan died."

Once she got up from sitting all night, she felt that her bladder was full and clutched her gut. She quickly exited the ship and headed into the terminal in search of a restroom. Spotting one once she entered the building, she went in and relieved herself. Sighing with relief, she left the stall only to find herself face-to-face with two male thugs.

"What do we have here? A lovely lass traveling alone, wandering an empty terminal early in the morning," said one of the thugs.

Lucretia frowned and closed the stall's door. "C'mon guys. You're not supposed to be in here. This is a ladies room."

The first thug brandished a large knife, waving it in Lucretia's face. "I don't think you understand the situation you're in, love."

The thug's partner stepped forward, edging closer to her. "Give us all your valuables, and no one gets hurt."

"Please, you wouldn't harm a woman, would you?" The thug's partner darted forward and grabbed her arm, but she diverted it away with a forceful blow. She followed up with a firm sidekick to his midsection, forcing him to the ground a few feet away. The thug with the knife attacked Lucretia by thrusting with his weapon. She dodged the attack by sidestepping and disarmed him by breaking his arm with a grapple technique. She forced him to his knees and drew her gun, placing it right against his head. Seeing the other thug start to recover, she fired a shot into the thug's head then shot the other before he could get back to his feet.

Once she calmed back down, she holstered her pistol and looked at the bloodshed she caused. She sighed and went to the sink to wash her hands._ 'Damn it. I need to learn discretion when dealing with these situations. Now I have to move the ship. Great.'_ As she was washing her hands, she noticed a shower in the corner of the restroom. _'Maybe I'll take a nice, hot shower before leaving.'_

She disrobed and put her clothes in the PAC, located next to the shower. During her shower, her clothes were washed, hopefully cleaned and dried by the time she was done. Once the PAC started up, she stepped into the shower and began washing up. The stall already had a soap and shampoo dispenser, so she didn't need to bring any of her own. The stall also had a built-in dryer, so no towels were necessary. When she was done, she got dressed, making sure not to step in the blood puddles from the two dead thugs. Before heading back to the ship to relocate, she took the thugs' wallets, watches, and the knife.

She disengaged the landing pad locks and started up the ship, sitting in the pilot's seat and thinking of what was next on her agenda. _'Okay, what's next? Got my hair and eye color changed. Got my new identity documents.' _She took another bite of her breakfast bar and turned around, eyeing all the boxes, bags, and miscellaneous items stashed in the cargo hold, stacked to the ceiling._ 'Man, I need to get rid of all this stuff.'_ What really stood out to her were all the dollar bill bundles overflowing from several bags. _'Maybe I should put this money somewhere safe first. Having all these valuables all in one place is making feel…uneasy.'_

She set the auto-pilot and let it fly the ship to the next destination. She was headed to a bank she and Rayff visited often, a non-brand name bank, favored by outlaws and people engaging in sketchy monetary transactions. Those kinds of banks didn't care about the law and would gladly take in bills stolen from legitimate banks. That was the easiest way to get rid of marked, or potentially marked, bills, other than laundering the money oneself. Most people used their services, despite the doubled transaction fees, to offload their money, and then make legitimate accounts at legitimate banks later on. Once made, they transferred over their assets from the third-party account to their new legitimate bank account, since it was just numbers in a computer; having the assets in a digital account bypassed security checks for stolen money, the physical bills themselves. That was what Lucretia had planned on doing, since most of her money came from illegal sources.

The ship landed at the nearest pad to the bank, about a few blocks down the road. Lucretia gathered all the loose bills and put them into two duffel bags, stuffed to capacity. She made sure she had all the necessary banking information and left the ship, taking care of the parking before heading off. She had the bags slung over her shoulders and one hand on her sidearm. Most muggings in the area occurred to people heading to the bank to make deposits. Lucretia had two fully loaded bags of money and had no intention of parting with them any time soon.

Fortunately for her, she made it to the bank without any hassles and entered. Immediately, she noticed the armored guards in each of the bank's corners, covered head-to-toe in body armor and armed to-the-teeth with assault weapons. The bank wasn't too busy, so she didn't have to wait too long before she found an empty attendant. The banker motioned Lucretia over to his office and closed the door after she entered.

"Please, have a seat," said the banker. Lucretia acknowledged and sat down in the vacant chair in front of the desk, placing the duffel bags by her seat. The banker took his place behind his desk and sat as well. "My name's Charles. How can I help you today?"

"I need to create a bank account and conduct a few transfers."

"Okay, what kind of account?" he said, typing on his keyboard.

"Checking."

"All right, let me see your identification and I can finish creating your account." Lucretia took out her wallet and handed over her new ID, almost not recognizing herself in the ID's picture.

Charles looked at the ID and handed it back to her. "Okay, all done. Your new account has been made," he said after filling in the last pieces of information. "Now with regards to the fees." He handed back her ID and folded his hands on the desk. "The price for creating an account is $50. Use of our services each month is $100. And five percent of the total amount of money moved during transactions is paid to us as well. So right now you owe us $50, unless you want to pay for the month's services now in advance?"

Lucretia put her ID away and reached into her wallet, slapping three $50 dollar bills on the desk. "There you go."

Charles took the money and checked off her payment on the computer. "Thank you very much, darling. Now, you said that you wanted to make some transactions as well?"

"Yes, I did. I'm part of Rayff's Pirates and I've been appointed 'treasurer' of the group. So now I'm in charge of their finances. He's ordered me to pool all of the member's assets into one account. Why he wants that done, I don't know."

"And you wouldn't happen to have all their banking information, would you?"

"In fact I do." She pulled out a notebook that had all the pirates' banking numbers complied in it. She made sure she had everyone's codes before leaving Rayff's ship.

Charles was skeptical about Lucretia's true motives, but whether she was telling the truth or not, he didn't really care; he was getting paid one way or another. "Okay. So what's first?" he asked.

Lucretia checked her notebook and looked at the account numbers. She didn't want to seem suspicious by starting with her account, so she began with Rayff's account, since he was in charge of the group. Next, she transferred all the assets out of her old account then went down the list, reading all the other pirates' bank accounts. By the time Charles was done making the transfers, Lucretia had around five million dollars in her account, even after paying a hefty service fee. Before she could stand up from her seat, Charles had drawn a pistol from under his desk and had it pointed it at her. She glared at him and started moving her hand slowly towards her sidearm. "What is the meaning of this?" she asked.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. Even if you did manage to kill me, I doubt that your little pistol would be able to put a dent on the armed guards outside," said Charles.

She moved her hand away from her weapon and stood casually. "You wouldn't shoot me."

"I beg to differ," he said, cocking his gun with his thumb.

She started to take him more seriously and crossed her arms over her chest. "So, what's this about?"

"I think that a tip is in order. Don't you think?"

"What kind of _tip_?"

"Oh nothing much…say $100."

"Do you usually do this to your clients?" she said, taking a $100 bill out of one of her duffel bags.

"Just to the ones that can afford it." He took the tip and lowered his weapon, smiling devilishly. "Have a nice day."

"You better hope we don't meet again, or else."

"We'll see about that."

Lucretia flicked him off as she exited his office, taking her money-filled duffel bags with her. _'If those guards weren't there, he'd be dead by now.'_ She made her way to the teller windows and stood in line to make a deposit. A smile started to form on her face after the thought of becoming a millionaire just moments ago popped into her head. When the person in front of her was finished, she picked up her bags and approached the window.

"What can I do for you?" asked the bank teller.

"I'd like to make a deposit."

"I can see," said the bank teller, watching her take bundle after bundle of bills out of her duffel bags. Lucretia put the money through a small opening underneath the window, allowing the teller to take the bills. She started putting the bundles through an automated money counter, making sure the amount being deposited was correct. By the time she was done emptying the bags, the teller's machine had counted up the total amount. Before going to the bank, Lucretia counted up the total amount herself, so if the teller told her an amount anything other than the one she came up with, she was going to be severely irritated.

The teller took the last of the bills from the machine, envying the money as she put it in the pile stacked neatly off to the side on the table. "You have a total of $358,462. To which account would you like to deposit all this?"

"Mine, if you would so kindly," said Lucretia, handing over her bank card.

"Say, where did you get all this money anyway?"

Lucretia looked at the teller with a standoffish look. "Nowhere. It's none of your business."

The teller shrugged it off and took the card, swiping it on the money counter. "Here you go. Your money has been deposited into your account." She handed back the card and had another teller start moving Lucretia's deposited money into the safe.

Taking back her card, she picked up her empty duffel bags and left the bank with a smile on her face. During her walk back to the ship, she went over what she still needed to get done. _'$5,732,580.12. About half way done. Just gotta sell all the stuff in the ship, make my legit bank account, sell the ship, buy a new ship, buy a home, and get all my stuff out of the storage unit. Huh, actually, I still have a lot to do.'_

She thought that she'd start first with selling all the excess weapons and ammunition she pillaged, since she was in an ideal place to do so. When she got back to the ship, she took inventory of all the weapons and ammunition she did not want to keep. She decided to keep the weapons and ammunition from her military days, since it was easy to track the sale of military-grade items, especially the ones she had used during the day she betrayed Devan. They also had some sentimental value, particularly Devan's sniper rifle, so she held on to them, being the sentimental type she was. The pirates she looted from didn't have much in terms of unique or rare weapons. They mainly had common sidearms, shotguns, and a few assault rifles and submachine guns. One weapon, however, struck her interest. Rayff's stainless steel magnum was among the items she had stolen from the ship. It had a custom rectangular barrel and a few personalized engravings in it. It was slightly sentimental, even if it did bring up bad memories, so she held on to it as well.

After everything was ready to be sold, she looked up all the weapons dealers in the area, calling each of them to see if they were interested in buying what she had to offer. The first few vendors said they weren't interested and hung up right away, but the third was buying and gave estimates for some of the items she had. The prices were reasonable, though low, but she didn't care that much. Her goal was to offload everything, so if the price was reasonable, at least to her, she'd take it without haggling the buyer too much.

Hanging up, she went downstairs to the lowest level of the landing terminal in search of a vehicle with a large cargo capacity. She spotted a gray van in the back of the rental lot and claimed it. Making her way back up to her ship, she started packing the weapons and ammunition she wanted to sell. She loaded her empty duffel bags with the sidearms and submachine guns in one, and the excess ammunition in the other. Seeing that she had a lot of items, she made several trips to and from the ship and the van. On her last trip down, she secured her ship and took the remaining rifles to the van.

'_Dang, I hope I can sell all this,'_ thought Lucretia as she started up the van. She remained optimistic as she drove out of the parking lot and to the meeting spot. The buyer told her to meet him at an abandoned warehouse to conduct their transaction. When she arrived, the guy was already there with his pickup truck and a couple of armed guards.

"The f*** is this?" asked Lucretia as she slowly drove up to them. Seeing that they hadn't opened fire yet, she assumed it was safe to get out. She turned off the car and kept her sidearm readily available. When she got out, the buyer approached her vehicle while the guards remained by the pickup truck. "What's with the guards?" she asked, shutting the van door.

"It's just a precaution. It happens with first time deals with new people. So, what have you got for me?" asked the buyer.

"Right this way," said Lucretia, making her way to the rear of the van. She opened up the back doors and revealed all the weapons and ammunition she had to offer.

The buyer examined her goods with moderate satisfaction. "These are what you were talking about? This is but mere common weapons that can be found anywhere," he said.

"And? I told you the models of all the weapons I had to offer. I also have ammunition, and you can never have too much ammunition," said Lucretia.

"Well, you've got a point there, but the price had better be good for all this. I need to make a profit, so I can't be buying too high now."

"I understand. So what do you want for all this?"

"All of this? Hmm…let me think about it. I may only want some of the items for my business."

"Listen, buddy, it's all or nothing. But don't worry. I'm sure we can work out a reasonable price."

The buyer took a moment to think it offer and look over everything. After contemplating for a bit, he turned to Lucretia. "$1,500 for everything, and not a cent more," he said, pulling out his wallet.

"Done. Have your men offload my van and I'll be on my way," said Lucretia, taking the man's money.

"What's your name? If you have anything else in the future, look me up. I'm sure continued business between you and me will benefit the both of us," said the buyer.

"The name's Devan Luck," she said, pocketing the money.

"I'm Barry Tilson. Pleasure," he said, outstretching his hand for a shake.

"Yeah, just hurry it up. I've got things to do," she said, returning the gesture. Once Barry's men had unloaded all the weapons and ammunition, they went their separate paths. _'Good. Sell all the weapons, check. One and a half grand for everything wasn't as much as I wanted, but whatever. I got rid of all that junk.'_ She continued back to the terminal to take care of the next order of business: selling everything else in the ship. _'What's next on my list? The junk I pillaged from the ship? Where am I going to find a buyer for that stuff? Damn. I'm going to need to move a lot of stuff. I'll start first with the electronics. There must be a scrap shop or pawn shop to dump all this around here.'_

#

Over the past month, Lucretia spent her time finishing up her transition to her new life as Devan Luck. While she was finding people to sell her things to, she scoped out some property inside Bower City, one of the main developed cities on Neonia. Having expensive tastes, and an excess of money, she looked at only the most premium living arrangements available. Eventually, she settled for the penthouse apartment at the top of Banks Tower, the premier apartment complex in the city.

She chose the penthouse due to its relative seclusion away from prying eyes and came already fully furnished with the latest security systems including security cameras, a fully-stocked panic room, reinforced front door with a level-III lock, and highly bullet-resistant glass all around. The apartment came standard with: one master bedroom, one smaller guest room, a kitchen and dining area, an office area in front of the main window in atrium/living room, and a bathroom in each bedroom. The previous owner didn't live in the penthouse for long, only about a couple of weeks, so everything was still relatively new. Lucretia was content with how everything was decorated, so she didn't have to deal with hiring people to work on her new home, though, there were some things that she wanted to add to her penthouse. Since the penthouse was already soundproof, she wanted to add a personal shooting range for handguns and other low-caliber weapons. She also ordered a Tekka Special 9000 surround sound system for her living room along with a Tekka wall-sized holo-projection screen. In the kitchen, she had someone add in a custom wine/alcohol cooler along with a mini-bar in the living room.

During the procurement of the property, renovations, and general transition, Lucretia was living in the luxurious hotel across the street, conducting her business from there. Once she sold everything that she pillaged from Rayff's ship, she sold the smaller cargo ship and bought herself a red Comet Industries SFX-3000, a sleek, single-seat shuttle with its own hyperdrive. Along with a new spaceship, she purchased a red Renault C400 SeaSpray, a luxurious high-end coupe. Along with her new life in the big city, and living in a high-class hotel, she needed some new threads. She wasn't much of a girly girl and wearing dresses, but she did have a high-standard of fashion. She visited a high-class tailor and got a custom fitted black suit with a dark red blouse and black tie. Along with the suit, she got a pair of nice, slick black oxfords and black pristine leather gloves.

Once the last upgrade to her apartment was finished, she got ready to move in and began her new life on the right foot. She packed up everything from her hotel room into her car and got dressed in her suit. _'So, my new home is finally done,'_ she thought as she adjusted her tie in the bathroom mirror. She made sure she was spick and span then grabbed her bag, heading for the front desk to checkout. After taking care of business, she went into the hotel parking lot and drove across the street into the Banks Tower underground parking lot, making her way to her own personal garage. She hit the automatic door opener and parked inside, closing the door after departing from her garage. Her garage was completely empty and had enough room to fit two vehicles plus extra room for storage. It was fully lit and temperature controlled for optimal storage of cars. She took her duffel bag that contained her personal items and left the rest for later.

Lucretia made her way out of the garage and into the lobby. _'Man, I can't wait to see what they've done to the penthouse. I just want to get all this preparation stuff behind me and start living. All I've been doing is work.' _She let out a sigh but smiled, glad that everything was almost done. She still had to clear out her storage locker and fully move in, but that wasn't a priority. She also had to go shopping for food and other basic necessities, but that could wait too.

When she arrived in the lobby, she was greeted by one of the staff there. "Good afternoon, Ms. Luck. How are you doing today?"

"Um, fine. Thanks," said Lucretia, making her way to her private elevator, leading up to her penthouse. Only she could use it, since she had the only keycard, and it led to a small hallway leading to the secure door to her penthouse. Once the elevator doors opened, and after entering her apartment, she was amazed and relieved at how everything looked. All the new furniture she had bought was already there and placed in the correct spot. Everything was clean and undamaged. The electronics were fully installed in the living room and looked just as she had imagined. She walked around the apartment and found a couple maintenance workers putting the finishing touches on her private shooting range.

"Ah, Ms. Luck. Just in time to see your new shooting range, ma'am," said one of the workers. Lucretia had converted an old bowling alley the previous owner had into the shooting range, so it wasn't too hard finding room for it.

"Looks amazing, Rick. Is it done?" she asked.

"Just about. Want to try it out?"

"I don't have a gun on me."

"Don't worry. We brought one to test the range's soundproofness and the bullet stoppers at the back," he said, revealing a sidearm on his belt. He had his assistant cleanup the area of their tools and got a target set up.

Once everything was clear and safe to shoot, Rick handed over his sidearm. "So, ma'am. Do you know how to handle one of these?"

"You kidding me? Give me that," said Lucretia. She snatched the pistol from him and checked the firearm to see if it was loaded, unlocked the safety, and unloaded all ten rounds downrange all in under twenty seconds. "Hmm, this pistol of yours seems to be a little loose. You should get that looked at," she said, handing back the pistol.

"That was impressive, ma'am. Where did you learn to shoot like that?" asked Rick, looking at the tight grouping in the target ten meters downrange.

"Self-taught. Now if you don't mind, you can leave. I want to get more acquainted with my new home. You can send me the bill whenever," she said.

"Sure. Can do. Thank you for doing business," said Rick as he and his assistant gathered their tools and left her apartment. Lucretia walked them to the door and closed it, turning around with a huge smile. She pranced around her penthouse like a little girl, admiring all the furnishings and expensive additions. She toured the living room, kitchen, and even the guest room. When she got the master bedroom, she chuckled with delight and gave a devilish laugh as she fell backwards onto her bed, satisfied that everything had finally come together. She beat the odds and had a new life, one of luxury and fine living, and not of being a subordinate and the dull routine of a military grunt.

"Ah. Now this is the life."


	3. Chapter 3 - Freelance

It took Lucretia a few days to get settled in to her new home at the top of Banks Tower. She went to her storage locker and moved all of her old possessions from her previous life to her new home, squaring them all away in their proper place. Once that was set, she went grocery shopping to buy food and other home supplies to fill the empty fridge and cabinets. After everything was in their rightful place, and all the tasks on her list completed, she decided to have a little fun.

"What should I wear for tonight?" she said, looking into her vast closet. Though, it was mostly empty except for some old clothes, her military uniforms and gear, and a few new sets of clothes she had recently bought. "Hmm…I need something classy," she said, moving past her old clothes and uniforms. She was split between her fitted suit and an elegant red dress she purchased on a whim. She decided on the dress and a nice pair of matching pumps to wear. Once she was ready, she gathered her matching purse and made sure she had her bank card and I.D.s on her way down to her car.

She got into her car and backed out, driving towards a nearby casino. _'Let's hope this lasts the night.' _She was headed to the Dusk till Dawn Casino, one of the largest casinos on the planet. It was located nearby in Bower City, so the drive there was short.

As she drove up to the front of the casino entrance, a valet was there to greet her. "Good evening, ma'am."

"There better not be a single scratch or I'll have your head," said Lucretia, glaring at him as she got out.

"Understood, ma'am," said the valet getting in and driving off to park the car. As he left, Lucretia secured her purse and looked at the building, admiring the neon lights and high-class surroundings. She smiled contently and entered, making her way to the chip exchange booth. The interior was bustling with activity as it was the peak hour for gambling. All around her, there were people of class, wealthy people, having a good time and spending their money at the various games. She casually walked over to the booth and approached the teller.

"How can I help you, ma'am?" asked the teller.

"Five thousand in chips, please," said Lucretia, handing over her bank card.

The teller complied and took her card, counting out the appropriate amount of chips. She handed back a tray of chips amounting to five thousand credits and her bank card. "Enjoy your visit and good luck," said the teller.

"Hmph, thanks," said Lucretia, walking away with her tray and card. She placed her card back in her purse and looked around to see what she wanted to do first. She decided on making some quick cash and went over to a roulette table.

After watching a few turns, she placed all her chips on red. She figured that she start off big and win a lot while risking losing in the first few minutes. "Five thousand on red," she said to the table operator. She anxiously looked at the table turning as the ball was placed in it, though she still looked calm and confident. As the table started to slow down, everyone present looked on in anticipation to see if she would win or lose. Once the table slowed to a stop, the ball rested in a red slot, making her the winner and doubling her money.

"Off to a good start," she said, collecting her winnings. Once her chips were tucked away on her tray, she left to find a more exciting game to play.

Throughout the night, she spent her time mostly playing Blackjack and a bit of other games, increasing her original starting amount by almost ten times. As the hour reached the early morning hours, Lucretia cashed out and had a few drinks at the bar. Her alcoholic drinks all had a cherry-flavored theme to them as she sat at the bar, celebrating her winnings. As she was drinking, she happened to overhear a conversation between two men sitting a table near her.

"It's an impossible shot, Jay. I can't do it," said one of the men.

"Carl, you have to do it. We already took the job, and if we don't get it done, we don't get paid. This is the opportune moment to hit the guy. What's so hard about it?" asked Jay.

"First off, it's at night, so visibility will be low. It's in the middle of nowhere, so where am I going to hide? And it's around a thousand yard shot! I can't shoot that far out with what I got."

Lucretia couldn't help but let out a loud chuckle, her sense of politeness stunted by all the alcohol in her system. "You kidding me? A thousand yards is no problem. I can make that shot no problem."

The two men looked over at her with annoyed looks. "Hey, lady, mind your own business if you know what's good for you," said Jay.

"Pssh…whatever. It's your loss," she said, continuing to down her drink. The two men were about to continue their conversation until Lucretia started talking again, babbling on about the specifics of long-distance shooting. "You know, the shot's pretty easy if you know all the variables…like wind speed, elevation. Even the rotation of the planet plays a part in taking one of those long-distance shots."

Carl was about to tell her to be quiet, but Jay stopped him. "Go on. What else can you tell us about this 'impossible' shot?" asked Jay.

"Heh, it's not impossible. I used to take shots like that _all_ the time. You just need to find a good firing position, set up camp, and wait. I can do it for you if you want," she said, guzzling down another cherry martini.

"Hmmm…hey, Carl, get lost. I think I've found myself a new shooter," said Jay, still looking Lucretia over.

"But, Jay, I took this job first!" said Carl.

"And you said you can't do it, so beat it. I'll call you if I get another job," said Jay. Carl looked at him then to Lucretia with a glare, grimacing before storming off. Once he was gone, Jay got up from his seat and sat down next to her at the bar. "So you say you can make the shot?" he asked.

She put down her glass and turned to him with a drunken look. "What do you think I've been talking about for the past hour? _Hic._ Of course I can make the shot? I've trained my whole life to make shots like those. _Hic._"

"Right…so I was thinking. Maybe I can bring you onboard and make a deal. Say…60/40. I get the bigger portion, of course, since I took the job and all. Forty percent isn't half bad, you being new and all," said Jay. Even though she was drunk, he didn't want to take too much advantage of her. Pushing for 60/40 was already hard enough and he needed her to do the job. "What do you say? Forty percent of something is better than zero percent of nothing, right?" he said.

Lucretia just sat there in a drunken stupor, just trying to make out what he said in her head. After just sitting there silent for a few moments, she smiled a raised her glass. "Sure. Sounds like a…fun. _Hic_. What do I gotta do, homes?" As Jay went over the mission specifics, none of it sunk into her head as she pretended to listen. She just sat there, drinking and making stupid faces as he spoke. Once he was done, he gave her a special scope to use for the mission and his business card. The scope acted as a video recorder, recording everything that was seen through the scope. The drawback to the scope was that it was a sub-par scope, which was partially why the original shooter, Carl, thought the shot was impossible. On the business card was his video-chat number as well as his phone number, just in case she needed to contact him again about the mission.

"Now are you sure you understand what you need to do? You seem a little…too drunk to be thinking about a hit," said Jay.

"Naw, I like my hair spiky like this," said Lucretia, totally oblivious to her surroundings by then.

"Right…well, if you need anything, give me a call. You have one week to finish the job, so hurry up and sober up," he said before leaving.

Lucretia watched him leave and decided it was time to go home as well. Once she got up from her seat, she struggled to stay on her feet. Once she got her footing, she wobbly made her way back to the entrance to drive home. "Yo, valet, where mah car be?" she said, walking over to the same valet she left her car with.

"Um, don't you think you're a bit too drunk to be driving, ma'am?" asked the valet.

"Nonsense! Uh, maybe."

"Let me see your bar card, please."

"What? You mean this thingie?" asked Lucretia, reaching into her purse and taking out her bar card. Before she started drinking at the bar, she had to fill out a "bar card", which had her name, address, and how many drinks she had, so security and other casino personnel could tell how drunk she was and what to do with her if there was a problem.

"Hmm…Banks Tower, Penthouse. That's not too far away. I'll arrange one of the escorts to bring you back home, Ms. Luck. Just have a seat here until it gets here," said the valet.

"Why thank you, GOOD SIR. I SHALL have a seat," said Lucretia, slumping down on one of the benches out there. As she waited, she dozed off into an alcohol-induced slumber.

#

When Lucretia woke up, her head was pounding. As she opened her eyes, she found herself back at her apartment, lying on her bed in her bedroom. As the pain stung her head, she reached over to her bedside table and reached into the drawer, pulling out a container of anti-hangover pills. She opened it up and popped a couple into her mouth.

'_Urgh, what the heck happened last night?'_ she thought as she swallowed the pills. She noticed she was still in her dress, so she went to the bathroom to change and wash up. Once she changed into street clothes and cleaned up, she picked up her purse from the bed and opened it up to make sure she still had her bank card. Not only did she find her bank card, she also found a bar card, a valet ticket, a rifle scope, and a business card.

'_The f*** is this?'_ she wondered as she picked up the scope and card. Immediately after reading the card, she remembered her conversation with Jay at the bar. She couldn't remember all the specifics, but she did remember talking with him. Curious, and eager to know exactly what happened last night, she went into her living room and dialed the video-chat number into her wall-sized screen's digital panel. She stood back so she could see the entire screen and waited, tapping her foot as she crossed her arms.

After a few seconds of ringing, Jay answered the call. "Ms. Luck, I was wondering when you'd call. Sober yet?" asked Jay.

"Very. Now tell me, what happened last night and what exactly were we talking about?" asked Lucretia.

"I had a feeling you wouldn't remember anything in that drunken state of yours, which is why I gave you my card with my contact information on it. Anyway, you overhead me and my colleague talking about making a hit. He said it was impossible, so I gave him the boot. You offered your assistance and replaced him with you. You offered to help and took the job. Remember?"

"Partially. I do remember all that, but none of the specifics. Enlighten me as to what this job entails."

Jay sighed and began from the beginning. "Carl and I took a job to take out a rival arms dealer named Hank Jorgen, a leopard. He is said to be visiting a nearby property of his, a warehouse, in about a week. All we have to do is kill him. My partner thought the shot couldn't be done, but then you show up and tell us otherwise. His warehouse is located in an open field in the middle of nowhere with nothing around. We planned on taking him out long range, since we couldn't get any closer, but the shot is too hard, according to him. We have a rifle and everything set to go for the shot."

"I already have a rifle. I've got that covered," said Lucretia.

"That's good, because I didn't feeling like brining mine to you anyway."

"So I have one week to kill this guy, and I have to use the scope you gave me to record it, yes?"

"Exactly. After you kill him, we'll arrange to meet again so you can handle over the scope with the proof that the target is dead. And, of course, you'll get your share once I turn in the scope. 70/30, I believe was what we agreed on."

"No wait just a second there. I do remember that part. It was 60/40, and if you try to f*** with me again like that, consider all this off."

"Now now, let's not get hostile. If you decide to bail on us, my partner and I will hunt you down. We will find you, and we will beat our money out of you."

"I'd like to see you tree. But don't worry, I'll do the job. I've been wanting to get out and do something anyway."

"Good to hear. I'm sending all the intel we have on the guy. See you in a week," he said before signing off. Lucretia went over to the control tablet for the big screen and looked at all the files Jay sent her. As she was skimming through the files, she couldn't remember how she got back home. She forgot to ask him about it while they were talking. She shrugged it off and went into the kitchen for some breakfast. As she made her way over, she saw a card on the countertop. It was from the casino and it said:

_Thank you for visiting Dusk till Dawn Casino. If you are reading this, then that means you were too drunk to drive home and an escort had to bring you home instead. If you drove to the casino, then please call (413)-777-1824 to have an escort pick you up so you can retrieve your vehicle. We hope you enjoyed your visit and do visit us again._

_-Management_

"So that's how I got back. Meh, I'll get my car later," she said, continuing to the fridge in pursuit of sustenance.

As she sat eating, she pondered about the job she was about to do. _'Maybe I shouldn't have taken the job. I'm supposed to be lying low, right? But then again, I need a job. Where else am I going to get money to sustain my lifestyle? What I have now isn't exactly going to last me. I guess this could be fun. If this mission goes well, then I'll think about continuing. If not…looks like it's just casino winnings to get me by. Either that or a real job. Just the thought of an honest day's work just gives me the chills.'_ After her meal, she looked over the files and tried to come up with a plan.

While she was thinking, she went into her closet to find something to wear for the job. _'What to wear, what to wear. I've got nothing. Hmm…there is my old combat gear. It's comfy, practical, tactical, and most suited for long-range shooting and getting down and dirty. It's going to be night anyway, and in the middle of nowhere, so no one is going to notice.'_ She took out her uniform and gear to make sure everything was ready to go. She stocked the pouches and pockets with the necessary gear and ammunition she would need for the job. As a precaution, she planned to wear street clothes during the drive out and change before she moved on foot. She packed everything into a duffel bag and made sure her weapons were good to go.

"I never thought I'd use this again," she said as she opened up her weapons safe. She pulled out Devan's sniper rifle and disassembled it, cleaning all the parts. She kept it mostly disassemble, so it would be easier to pack and conceal. Along with the rifle, she packed her sidearm, just in case. She put the rifle in a rifle bag and set it next to her duffel bag. She scouted the surrounding area for a shooting range to test out her new scope and to make sure the rifle was working as it should. She found an outdoor range that supported long-range rifles in addition to normal handguns and shotguns. She changed into casual street clothes and took her rifle and pistol, bringing along her old scope as well to make sure the rifle was zeroed correctly.

The ride to the range took about thirty minutes. When she arrived, the lot was mostly empty, so she figured it wouldn't be too hard to find a lane and not be bothered while she shot. She took her rifle bag and another bag containing her ammunition, scopes, and sidearm from the car and headed inside to get a range card.

"Hello there. Haven't seen you around. What do you need, miss?" asked the guy at the front desk.

"Um, hi. I need one of the rifle lanes for long-distance shooting," said Lucretia, filling out the questionnaire for a range card.

"Long-distance, eh? How far do you need and what do you use? I don't see a rifle anywhere."

"I shoot a custom Lancaster CSR-50. As for range, I need targets at least a thousand yards out."

"A CSR-50? How did you get your hands on one of those? Ain't that one of the sniper rifles the military uses?"

She paused, almost giving away her true identity. "Why, yes. But this is my father's. He used it while he was in the service. He gave it to me as a gift. I mostly shoot for sport, whereas he shot to kill."

"I see. Well, we do have a section for long-range shooting that has targets ranging out to a thousand yards, so you're good to go. Black range is the one you're looking for," said the attendant, handing Lucretia her range card.

"Thanks," she said, taking the card and proceeding onto the ranges. The first range she came to was the pistol and magnum range. She leaded left, past the sub-machinegun, shotgun, and assault rifle ranges. The long-distance shooting range was secluded away from the others and was completely empty. Lucretia picked a spot to herself and began setting up. She got out her sniper rifle and assembled it, letting it rest on its bipods as she loaded the magazine and attached her old scope and suppressor. Once everything was ready to fire, she got out her spotter's scope and scanned downrange for the targets. She spotted targets out one-hundred and five hundred yards. Those distances were no problem for her, so she continued looking for the thousand yard targets. Once she spotted them in the distance, bright, red, metal circles that said "one-thousand" on them, she put in her earplugs and moved over to her rifle, lying on the ground. She flipped up the scope covers and shouldered the weapon.

She zoomed in on the target, exhaling slowly, getting her breathing under control. She steadied her hand and kept the target in focus. Switching the safety off, she placed her finger on the trigger, waiting for the right moment to shoot. In her mind, she was accounting for all the variables she mentioned earlier to Jay. Once the breeze stopped, she fired, barely clipping the edge of the target.

"Huh, not bad for the first shot after weeks of stagnation," she said, adjusting her scope to account for her previous shot. She refocused in on the target and fired again, hitting it a few inches from dead center. After a few more clicks to the scope, she fired again, hitting it right in the middle. She fired off two more shots to make sure she could be consistent. Both of them hit dead center, one right on top of the other. Satisfied with the rifle's performance, she switched out scopes and adjusted the new one the same way she did her old one.

When she made ready to fire, she flipped up the scope's cover and peered through. _'Huh, this thing seems all right. Around the same amount of magnification. Crosshairs is different, but I've seen worse. Now how do you work the recording ability?'_ She took a moment to inspect the scope, looking for a button or switch to turn it on_. 'Where is the on button or the record switch? Oh wait, here it is.'_ She hit the power switch to on and began recording. There was an LED light that signified the scope was recording. She got back into position and peered through the scope. _'Oh, now I see why he hated this scope.'_ Little did she know, once the scope began recording, the bottom right of the scope had a screen that showed the viewer what was recording. So when she looked through the scope to shoot, a quarter was covered by the recording screen. Unlike the previous shooter, the screen didn't bother her and she still had access to the crosshairs to make accurate shots. She readied herself and shot with the new scope attached, hitting the target dead on. She fired two more times to make sure the scope didn't move and that the rifle was still working perfectly.

Satisfied with her shooting, she packed up her rifle and made her way over to the pistol range to get reacquainted with her sidearm. The range was busier than the long-distance range. A few people were shooting, but she was able to find a stall all to herself, away from the others. She placed her rifle bag down by her side and placed her duffel bag on the table, taking out her handgun and ammunition. She loaded a couple of magazines and took aim at a target, placing her first five shots well within the bull's-eye. She quickly finished her current clip and the other one before leaving the range.

The next day, she decided to get a visual on her target to make sure she knows what he looks like and how he behaved. She was used to following people to gather intelligence, so it all felt natural to her when she took the time to stalk her prey before the hit.

'_Ain't that something. The guy has his own convoy.'_ Lucretia sat at a coffee café, sipping a caramel mocha across the street as her target visited a bank before the deal. She was casually dressed in a black, knee-long skirt, white blouse, partially unbuttoned, and black blazer with sleek, black pumps. She learned that the target drove in a convoy of three vehicles and that he was always in the middle car, which proved to be useful information. The less time she took trying the find the target when the time came, the better. After tailing the arms dealer for most of the afternoon, she went back home to relax and hit the casino again. This time, she made sure she didn't get drunk, or at least, too drunk.

On the third day of her allowed seven, she wanted to plan a route to the warehouse and locate the firing position mentioned in Jay's files. She put on a casual, bright-red spring dress, a cream-colored sun hat, and dark brown dress boots. She brought along her rifle, disassembled in a non-conspicuous looking bag, and loaded it into her car. As she was speeding down a secluded highway towards the warehouse, she was blaring music as she drove. She had the windows fully down with her left arm resting on the door. _'This is getting boring. Once I scope out his warehouse and the firing position, I'm going to kill the guy. I'm not even going to wait. I'm taking him out tomorrow for sure.'_

As she was growing nearer, she could barely see the large structure in the distance. Since she hadn't seen anyone for miles, she decided to pull off to the side of the road and park, continuing on foot. She grabbed her bag from the trunk and put on her shades, walking up an incline and onto an open field. She tried to enjoy the walk as she casually strolled through the open field. She took out a piece of paper with a map of the surrounding area on it and looked around for the rock formation he mentioned. _'Well, this is nice. Haven't been able to take a nice walk like this in awhile. Nice clear sky. A slight breeze flowing. Temperature is moderate. I might just hang out here for awhile….but then again, I want to hit the casino again and I still gotta get back to the city. Oh well.'_

She spotted the rock formation and headed over to it to see if it was as good to shoot from. _'Huh…so far so good.' _She climbed up and found a flat patch of rock to lie on. She kept in the shadows of the formation and began assembling her rifle. Once it was back together, she lay on the rocks and shouldered her weapon, getting a feel for her surroundings. She looked through the scope in the direction of the warehouse, making note of key points of interest. She saw the entrance to the grounds and the entrance to the actual warehouse. The immediate area around the warehouse was fenced off, which obscured her shot just slightly. Once she was comfortable with the firing position, she packed up and headed back to her car.

When she got back, she found an officer squad car parked next to it and the officer inspecting the vehicle. "Is this your vehicle, ma'am?" he asked.

Lucretia paused, quickly assessing the situation and coming up with ways to get out of it. "Why yes, officer. It is," she said, trying to buy herself some time.

"Is there any particular reason why your car is abandoned by the road side?" he asked, walking towards her.

She stood her ground and played along. "I was…out taking a walk, officer. Just enjoying the weather, sir"

"Out here?"

"Well, it's far away from the city and void of any of the industrialized buildings."

"Let me see your identification, ma'am, please."

She grimaced slightly, reaching into her bag for her I.D. She eyed her sidearm in the bag, making sure it readily available if she needed it. She made sure to hide the contents of the bag from the officer as she fished out her I.D. "Here you go, officer," she said, handing it over.

The officer took it and compared the card to her. Seeing Lucretia as just an innocent woman, he handed back the I.D. and let her off with a warning. "If you want to go on a walk, please make sure you park your vehicle in a designated parking lot. It's not safe to be leaving such a nice car here all by itself," he said.

"Thank you, officer. I'll be careful next time," she said, taking back the card and placing it back in her bag.

"Have a good day, ma'am," said the officer as he made his way back into his car.

"You too." Lucretia went back into her car and waited for the officer to depart. Once he left, she frowned with disdain, but relieved that she didn't have to kill anyone, especially an officer of the law. She started up her car and headed back home for an evening of gambling at another casino.

When the next day came along, she spent the light hours relaxing and prepping for the mission. As it began getting dark, Lucretia packed up and left for the warehouse. Instead of using her vehicle, she rented a cheap car to use just for the job, so she didn't attract too much attention like last time. She drove to the same point she parked at last time, but parked across the street behind some bushes.

'_All right, time to get to work.'_ She took her duffel bag with her uniform and gear and got out. She moved to the side of her car and began changing. She wasn't worried about getting seen, since there was no one around and it was getting dark. After gearing up, she got out her rifle and assembled it, since it was easier to carry it assembled rather than in a bag. She double checked to make sure she had everything then locked the door, looking both ways to make sure no one was around before crossing the street and making her way up the incline.

"Just like old times, huh, Devan?" she said, patting her rifle. She was talking to her gun as if it were her partner, making her way to the rock formation at a sedate pace. Along the way, she made sure that no one was around as she walked, keeping alert for any signs of life. Once she got there, she laid down in the same spot as before and set up her rifle, letting it rest on the bipod as she peered through the scope. Everything seemed to be just fine, so all she had to do was wait. It was still an hour before the arms dealer showed up, so she had enough time to spare.

After seventy minutes of waiting, she heard vehicles in the distance. The arms supplier had already shown up, but she wasn't after the supplier; she was there to kill the dealer. She reshouldered her weapon and looked through the scope in the direction of the warehouse complex's entrance, engaging the scope's recording ability. She spotted the three SUV convoy moving in the distance towards the warehouse. She kept her sights on the middle vehicle, trying to anticipate where the target would depart from the car. The windows were tinted, so she couldn't get a visual on the target. She continued to watch the convoy until it stopped near where the arms supplier was. When the vehicles stopped, and everyone got out, she kept vigilant for the leopard. The arms supplier approached the convoy and began talking to the arms dealer, but he was still blocked by the SUV.

"S***. I can't get a shot." She continued to remain on guard, growing anxious about losing the shot. She continued watching an opportunity presented itself. The arms supplier led the arms dealer over to his vehicles to inspect some merchandise, moving him out into the open. Lucretia acted fast and made sure the scope was on before taking the shot. She slowed her breathing and took aim, getting the man's head in the center of her crosshairs. As she controlled her breathing, she placed her finger on the trigger and squeezed, voiding the man's head of his brains. "Perfect." She quickly got up and grabbed her rifle, running back to her car to get out of there before she was caught. The suppressor made the shot impossible to trace from the range, but she still wanted to be as far away as possible, just in case they began searching for the shooter. Once she got back, she quickly changed out of her uniform and stashed her rifle and gear in the trunk. She sighed with relief, satisfied with a job well done, and drove back to the city.

#

As she entered the casino, she headed straight for the bar to meet up with Jay and deliver the scope. She wore the same outfit she did when they first met, seeing it was one of the only fancy outfits she owned at the moment. She saw him sitting by himself at one of the outer tables, so she made her way over to him and sat down in the seat in front of him.

"So, how did it go?" asked Jay.

"Easy," said Lucretia, handing over his scope.

"Good. Once I have the money from our employer, I'll contact you again."

"No need. Here, just wire it to my account," she said, handing him a slip of paper with her bank account number on it.

Jay took the piece of paper and looked it over. "All right. I can do that. Pleasure doing business with you.

"Likewise."

"Have you ever thought about going into the hitman business? I could use a new shooter. My partner left to pursue…other ventures."

"I haven't thought about it, but it sounds like something I would be willing to do. What are you offering?"

"As in your share?"

"Yeah. I want eighty percent, on account of me risking my neck out there and not you. Last time you got lucky. Negotiating 60/40. I was f****** drunk when I agreed to that, but now, I want eighty."

"Eighty, huh?" asked Jay, furrowing his eyebrow.

"Hey, twenty percent of something is better than zero percent of nothing, remember that?"

Jay looked at her and smiled. "Well said. I guess I can do eighty…for now. I'll keep in touch."

"If you say so," she said, leaning back in her chair.

"What are you going to do now?"

Lucretia stood up and reached into her purse. "Me? I'm going to start living." She took out her bank card and headed straight for the chip exchange.


	4. Chapter 4 - Alley Trash

After a year of operating as a freelance assassin and gun-for-hire, Lucretia finally adjusted to her new life as Devan Luck. Along the way, she perfected and refined her background and cover, playing the angle of a rich, philanthropist daughter to a self-made multi-millionaire who inherited his entire fortune. She donated a small part of her job earnings to various charities around the city, just to keep up appearances. Once she had her angle finalized, she took care of any loose ends that knew the old Devan Luck, which mainly included her previous business partner, Jay, and a few other associates. After cleansing her rough start, she was able to start anew and began truly living the life she had always wanted, one of fancy living and total relaxation.

To continue funding her lifestyle, she kept taking on assassination jobs and other work that required the skill of a markswoman. She found a new handler, a wolf in his mid-twenties named Fowler, to help her find work. Along with her new partner, she created an alter-ego to use while carrying out her missions. She didn't want her questionable occupation to ruin her new life, so she used an alias and a specified outfit while going on her missions.

In the criminal underground, she was known as "Lady Luck" and sported a recognizable, yet inconspicuous outfit. Being fond of high-class dress, she chose to sport a customized suit made specifically for her. Her suit consisted of black dress slacks with small, red lines running down the sides, a dark, crimson blouse with a sold black tie, a black, thigh long suit jacket with pouches inside and small red stripes going down the length of it, a black dress vest, and black, leather loafers. Along with that, she had a few items to help conceal her identity including: a black face mask, custom black shades with a slight red tint, black, leather gloves, and a black fedora with a red stripe. Not only was her outfit fashionable, it was also tactical and functional. All the items of the suit were fire retardant and cut-proof. Her coat and vest could withstand small caliber handguns, but nothing more powerful than that. Her suit allowed air to circulate and helped regulate temperature.

Lucretia was sitting at her desk, counting the money she had just earned from her last job. She sighed and placed the last stack of hundred credit bills of to the side. _'Another job well done. I haven't been to the bank in a while and all this money is piling up in my safe. Guess I'd better go make a deposit then.' _She got up from her seat and went into her bedroom, heading for the hidden wall safe in her closet. She typed in the password and placed her hand to the scanner, using her key to open it up once she passed the first two security checks. Once she opened it up, it was filled from the bottom to the top with stacks of bills she had earned. She smiled and retrieved a nearby briefcase, filling it with as many bills as the case would fit. She jammed packed the briefcase to make as much room as she could in her safe. Once it was filled, she scrambled the lock on it and handcuffed it to her wrist, heading downstairs to her car.

Before she started it up, she temporarily uncuffed the briefcase and placed it in the seat next to her. _'You know, don't you think all this is getting a bit…boring?'_ she thought to herself as she chose a song on her car's custom stereo_. 'Well, maybe. All I need is something different to change things up, you know? Something to keep me preoccupied between missions. But what?'_ She turned the ignition and backed out, driving towards the bank with the windows down and the radio blaring. She tapped on the steering wheel, keeping in synch with the beat of the song as she pondered on what to do to preoccupy herself. _'What did I used to do in-between missions back as a Crimzon Rose? I practiced. Went to the gym. Did drills. Filled out paper work. What else? Well, I also trained Devan.' _She paused, thinking about her time with Devan back in the military. _'Now that I think about it, I actually did spend a lot of my free time mentoring her. I taught her how to shoot like a recon sniper. I taught her tips on how to handle and operate her rifle. I even taught the poor girl how to fight. Now those were the days. It was fun being a role model for someone lower than me. So what? Are you saying I should get an apprentice? Maybe. We'll see.'_

As she arrived at the bank, she pulled into the underground parking lot that most of the buildings in the city had. Most of the spaces were filled, so she had to park in the far reaches of the lot, taking an empty spot in a dark corner. After turning off her car, she secured the briefcase back to her wrist and stepped out, shutting the door behind her.

Just as she did, she felt the hard steel of a firearm pressed against her. "Hand over the briefcase! Right now!" said the person mugging her.

Lucretia couldn't help but smile, surprised at the nerve someone had to mug her from behind. "Really? You're going to mug _me_?"

The mugger turned Lucretia around and kept her distance, holding her pistol sideways at her like an amateur. She was a mouse in her early twenties, dirty and wearing tattered clothes from living on the streets. "I ain't fooling around. Give me the briefcase or I'll bust a cap in your fancy a**!"

The look of desperation on her face said it all. Lucretia was undeterred, standing fast and keeping a cool head. "You will? And then what? How do you plan on getting out of here with the briefcase anyway? There are guards at the parking garage entrance and you're certainly not considering going through the bank, right? Besides, the safety's on." Just as the girl turned the handgun to look at the safety, Lucretia swiftly dashed forward and grabbed a hold of the hand the gun was in, forcing it until the pistol was aimed at her face. "Now there are two ways this can go down. One, a make you pull the trigger and you blow your brains out or two, you let go of the gun. What will it be?"

The mugger was trembling with fright as she looked down the barrel of her own gun. "I-If I let go. Y-You won't shoot me, will you?"

"I won't," said Lucretia. The mouse thought it over for a second then released her grip on the gun. She stepped back as Lucretia took complete control of it and inspected it. "This thing is a piece of junk. It's scuffed up and beaten to h***. And by the way, the safety _was_ on." She took the gun and placed it on top of her car's hood. She also undid the handcuffs and placed her briefcase on the hood next to the gun. "If you want your gun back, and the one hundred and fifty thousand credits in this here briefcase, then you're going to have to beat me in a fight for it. Think you got what it takes to get passed me?"

The girl smirked and raised her fists. "You ain't nuthin', you rich b****!" She began with a reckless punch, but Lucretia simply smacked the blow away with a haughty grin. The mugger followed up with a flurry of punches, but Lurcetia skillfully dodged all her blows, still wearing the snooty smile as she fought.

"C'mon, is that all you got, '_street rat_'?" asked Lucretia as she stopped one of the mouse's punches with her hand. The girl was shocked and tried to pull her hand back, but Lucretia had a firm grip on it. She grinned and delivered a straight punch to the mouse's stomach, pushing all the air out from her. The mugger gasped for air as she fell to her knees, clutching her abdomen with her hands. "You got spunk, kid, I'll give you that. But other than that, you're a pitiful excuse for a criminal. Sporting a gun, yet not knowing how to use it? Pathetic."

The mouse regained her breath as she stumbled on the ground. "Spare me the pity, but you don't know what it's like. You're rich. You don't know what desperate is. I've been living on the streets my entire life, doing things, unspeakable things, just to stay alive. It's all or nothing now; I'm out of money and have nowhere to go. No family, no friends. Nothing. Just kill me. Kill me now, so I can get this stupid life over with." She remained on the ground, kneeling while bowing her head.

Lucretia was in quite a quandary. She had some homeless girl in front of her asking for death. Her life, and the choice of whether she lived or died, was in her hands. 'Well this is different. Wasn't quite looking for this kind of change, but whatever. Let's see how this goes.' She reached into her pocket and took out her handcuffs. "Turn around," she said.

The mouse looked up with teary eyes. "W-What? Are you…arresting me?"

"Not quite," said Lucretia as she handcuffed the mouse's hands behind her back. "Get up and get in." She opened up the side door to her car for her.

"What are you doing?" asked the mouse.

"Just get in the car," said Lucretia taking the briefcase and gun from the hood. She placed the briefcase in the backseat and kept the pistol in her hand, keeping it aimed at the mouse as she got into the passenger seat. Once she was in, she closed her door and got into the driver's seat. "Why so eager to die? Have you ever thought about finding work?" she asked.

"Work? What can I possibly do? I haven't even been to high school," said the mouse.

"Really? How much education have you got under your belt?"

"I made it past seventh grade. I dropped out halfway through eighth. That's about it."

Lucretia looked on, unimpressed and almost flustered by her situation. "Don't worry; you're not going to need math and science for what I have in mind for you."

"You have a job for me?" asked the mouse, turning to meet Lucretia's gaze.

"Why yes, yes I do. How would you like to be my apprentice?"

"Apprentice? Doing what?"

"Simple. Becoming one of the galaxy's top assassins."

At first, the mouse wasn't quite sure she heard her correctly. "Assassin? You? You don't look like killer material to me."

Lucretia grinned with self-satisfaction. "And who's the one that put you on the ground in just one blow? Who's the one that turned the tables on an armed assailant with nothing but her wit? Believe me, I wouldn't lose a single second of sleep by killing you here. But that would be a waste. I see potential in you."

"Just who are you anyway?"

"You don't know who I am? Don't even recognize me?" The mouse shook her head. "The famous Devan Luck? Inheritor of a fortune and an avid philanthropist? C'mon, surely you would have heard of my generosity to the community in one of the…I don't know, soup kitchens or something that you may have frequented?"

"Philanthropist? What is that?"

Lucretia sighed, shaking her head at the girl's naivety. "I donate a lot of money to charities."

"And you're an assassin? What is this, a cover?"

"Precisely. In public, I live the life of an innocent, happy-go-lucky millionaire. But while in the underground, I take on assassination jobs as the infamous Lady Luck. And so far, my alter-ego seems to be working. Nobody knows that Lady Luck and I are the same person."

The mouse looked away, trying to comprehend everything that she was being told. "So why are you telling me all this? I know who you really are."

"I know. But now you have to make a decision. You can take the job, enjoying a luxurious lifestyle while apprenticing under me to become an esteemed assassin, making a name for yourself. That or you can respectfully decline and I shoot you here and continue on with my day. So what's it going to be?"

"Hmm…let me think about that for a second. Yes, I'll be your apprentice," said the mouse.

"I had a feeling you would have said that even without the death threats, am I right?"

"Well, you're offering to feed me, clothe me, and house me, right? I can't be your apprentice if I'm constantly on the verge of death."

"Don't worry. As long as you do as I say, you'll be set for life. Who knows? I might even give you a monthly stipend, depending on how well you do in your training."

The thought of money and fine living made the mouse smile, totally forgetting about how she got into that situation. "I can't believe this. And just this morning, I thought I would be dying in some back alley, but now I have a chance to continue living. Thank you so much, Ms. Luck."

"Don't get too comfortable. There still is a chance that you'll end up dead in some back alley if you don't take your training seriously, but for now, you're my apprentice, and I will teach you to be a lethal killing machine of extreme precisions and poise. By the way, what's your name, kid?"

"My name is Wendy, Wendy Shoemaker."

"That's Wendy Shoemaker, _ma'am_. Girl, not only do I have to teach you how to be an assassin, but also a polite, young-lady of high-class living. Okay, _Wendy_, just sit tight. I need to go take care of some business inside the bank."

"You going to rob it?"

Lucretia turned back to her and shook her head. "I'm going to make a deposit, you idiot."

"Sorry. Mind uncuffing me then?"

"Fat chance. I just met you. For all I know, you could hotwire the car and ditch me, and that is unacceptable. Just sit tight," said Lucretia, shutting her door. She retrieved her briefcase and hid the pistol in jacket, making her way inside.

As Lucretia walked into the bank, Wendy remained seated in her car, looking around. "Nice car. This is going to be sweet. I just hope becoming a renowned assassin isn't as hard as it sounds." She sighed as she reclined in her seat, thankful that she was given a second chance at life.

#

"Hey, wake up." Lucretia snapped her fingers in front of Wendy's face. She opened her eyes after taking a nap while Lucretia was taking care of business.

"Where are we?" asked Wendy.

"Home. For me and for you." Lucretia got out of the car and walked over to the passenger side. Once Wendy got out, Lucretia undid the handcuffs and locked the car. "C'mon, it looks like you need something to eat, and I guess a shower wouldn't hurt either."

"A shower? I haven't had a shower in days."

"I guess that explains the smell," said Lucretia with disgusted look. She and Wendy left the garage and headed inside the tower. "While I was in the bank, I made a sub-account that you can use for your own purposes. I also got you a debit card so you can make purchases on your own. Don't take this lightly, though. I still have control of your account, but you can still make deposits and withdraws. I didn't give you complete ownership of it so you don't ditch me and take the money. That would be very bad…for you, because I can easily track you down and kill you. Am I clear?"

"Yes."

"Yes _what_?"

"Yes…ma'am. But I have no money. What do I need a bank account and card for?"

"To kick start your new life, I gave you a thousand credits to start off with. As you train with me, and fulfill your duties, you'll get a monthly stipend and a share of any contract that we collaborate on. In the beginning, you won't be doing any work, but as you show me that you can handle yourself, I might bring you along for the experience."

Wendy's face was beaming with delight. "A thousand credits. Thank you so much, ma'am."

"No problem, kid."

"I'm twenty. I'm not a kid."

"You're a kid in my eyes. Prove me otherwise, and I'll stop calling you that," said Lucretia. The elevator doors opened and they walked out into the lobby.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Luck. How are you today?" asked one of the tower staff.

"Splendid. Thanks," said Lucretia, sliding her keycard into her elevator's key slot. The staff member gave her an odd look as he saw Wendy following her, wearing tattered clothes, looking messy, and smelling foul.

"You have your own elevator?" asked Wendy.

"Yes, I do. It leads straight to the penthouse and only I can access it," said Lucretia.

"You live in the penthouse!? That is so cool," said Wendy, grinning with anticipation.

Lucretia couldn't help but smile also. Wendy's eagerness and youthful enthusiasm reminded her of Devan, her old partner. She was glad that she crossed paths with Wendy, hopeful that her new protégé will prove herself and that she could mold her into a successful assassin like herself.

After exiting the elevator and making it through the front door, Wendy was overwhelmed with joy at the sight of Lucretia's luxurious home. "This is so fancy looking! Everything is so shiny and clean looking," she said, walking around the foyer.

"You can have the auxiliary bedroom to yourself, but don't get too comfortable. We're leaving in half an hour," said Lucretia, heading into the mini-bar for a quick drink.

"What for? Where are we going?" asked Wendy as she rummaged through the fridge for something to eat.

Lucretia looked over at her and shook her head again in frustration. "Okay, hold on, Wendy. Before you go exploring _my_ fridge and other rooms, let me lay down some ground rules. Number one, don't go in my bedroom. _EVER_. That is my personal sanctuary and you're not allowed inside. Number two, don't touch any of the electronics without my permission, at least, not until you've earned my complete trust. Number three, you're not allowed to leave the penthouse without my permission or accompanied by me. And finally, DO NOT TELL ANYONE ABOUT MY SECRET IDENTITY, okay? In addition to those four rules, do exercise common courtesy. It's only fair, since you are living in _my_ home. Any questions?"

"No, ma'am. I'll be good. But you didn't say where we were going."

"We're headed to my mansion on Alkion."

"You have a mansion!? This keeps getting better and better. Why do you have a mansion?"

"It's actually more like a very big house than a mansion. It's where I train and practice for missions. It's also my little paradise away from the craziness of this city. We're going to head there to see what you got, which is probably not much by what you showed me earlier."

"Sweet! I can't wait to get started."

"Splendid. Now, grab something to eat and take a shower. We'll leave once you're done." Wendy gave a nod and took out a bunch of random food to eat before taking her shower. While she was getting freshened up, Lucretia has a few shots of whiskey before getting her things together for the trip.

After taking her shower and washing whatever clothes she had on, Wendy met Lucretia in the foyer, all ready to go. Lucretia had a luggage bag packed and a sidebag with her as well. "What's with the bags?" asked Wendy.

"We're going to be staying on Alkion for a week or so during your crash course in becoming an assassin. These are just clothes and supplies to keep me satiated until we return," said Lucretia. She grabbed her bags and opened her door. "C'mon, let's get a move on. I want to get there before the night is over." Wendy acknowledged and followed her out of the apartment. As they were driving to the spaceport, Wendy was admiring the city through the lens of high-class living. She hadn't seen the beauty of the city like she was doing from Lucretia's car. The neon lights blurred as they sped by each of the casinos and other buildings on the main strip, adding to the alluring nightlife of the filthy rich.

Lucretia smiled as she looked over to see Wendy so entranced by her surroundings that she had grown so used to. "What's the matter? Never seen the city before?" she asked.

"Not like this. I'm usually lying in some back alley or trying to find something to eat in the bad side. I've never been to this part of the city before."

"Well get used to it, Wendy. From now on, I'm going to show you what _real_ living is," said Lucretia with a smile. They arrived at the spaceport and made their way inside the terminal, heading to where her ship was parked.

"This is your ship!? It's so sleek looking!" said Wendy as they walked onto the platform.

"Yup. That's my baby. Got it custom fitted with a bunch of cool stuff a few months ago," said Lucretia. She unlocked the outer hatch and stepped in, moving into the cockpit to begin start-up procedures. Wendy made her way inside and shut the hatch, taking a seat in the small compartment right behind the cockpit. "Have you ever flown in a starship before?" asked Lucretia.

"Not that I remember. I've lived here all my life."

"Aren't you afraid to being flying into space?"

"Nope. I'm excited," said Wendy, strapping herself into her seat.

"Good. We'll be outta here in a second. Just need to fire up the engines," said Lucretia, prepping the ship for launch. She ignited the engines and turned on the nav computer, selecting Alkion from her favorites list. Once she was ready, she piloted the ship from the ground and proceeded into space, engaging the hyperdrive to jump to Alkion. Within a few minutes, they arrived at their destination. Lucretia continued to fly the ship towards the planet, navigating to where her home was. As she got pulled in by the planet's gravity, she continued to head straight through the atmosphere and into the clothes.

"So what is this planet again? Alkion?" asked Wendy.

"Yeah. It's still under VCG control. It's relatively new and I got a sweet deal on the property I have. They were practically giving it all away. There it is in the distance. See it?"

Wendy got up and went over to the cockpit, peering out the windshield. In the distance, she could see Lucretia's large house situated on the fifty-acre property, which was fenced off by an industrial-strength, ten foot high steel fence in the shape of a rectangle. The fence was electric and was topped off with barbed wire to deter any unwanted guests, powerful enough to stop a Kobold, if any of them showed up at her doorstep. The property was monitored by a top-of-the-line security system, including cameras and auto-turrets. At each corner of the property, and at every center point of the fence, there was a GEM-III turret stationed there, the same ones used in the metropolitan cities. The turrets used .50 caliber ammunition and were motion activated, thought, the turrets' AI was smart enough to distinguish a hostile from a regular person or wildlife, so there was little to no accidents.

"So this is where you do all your training?" asked Wendy.

"Yeah. I have my own private shooting range for sniper rifles and pistols. Inside the house, I have my own training dojo and workout room in the basement. I also store the majority of my gear and weapons here for safe keeping. I rarely keep anything relating to 'Lady Luck' at my penthouse, just to be safe. This house is miles away from the city and any law enforcement that might be lurking around, so it's the ideal place to conduct my business from."

"Oh, cool. What kind of guns do you have?"

"Quite a few. You'll see when we get to the armory," said Lucretia with a smile as she turned to Wendy. As she got closer to the house, she hovered around and set the ship down on the landing pad behind the house. She secured the ship and grabbed her bags, opening the outer hatch to head to the house. After Wendy got out, Lucretia closed the hatch and locked the ship. "Welcome to Luck Estate," she said, opening up the back door to the house.

The inside of the mansion looked totally different from the building's old, rustic exterior. The décor and all the furniture inside the house were modern-styled and technologically sleek and stylish. The floor consisted of smooth, black tiling while the walls and ceiling her white, glossy panels. The ambient, white ceiling lights illuminated the house fully, giving a vivid feel of modern-living. All of the interfaces for the electronics were holo-panels and some of the utilities were even compatible with voice commands.

"This is so cool! How come you don't live here more often?" asked Wendy.

"Because the nearest casino is a thirty minute flight from here. Not to mention all the stores and restaurants too. Those are kinda important to a person like me. C'mon, I'll show you to your room," said Lucretia, leading the way into the house. As they were walking, Lucretia continued to talk about her house's nifty features. "The house is totally self-sufficient, which is why I don't need to depend on the city for my utilities. The electricity comes from a power generator secluded away somewhere on the lot. It takes in solar energy and wing energy, storing it away until I use an electronic device or something like that. It's all very technical and I leave it to the technicians to deal with, but they assured me that it's good for life. Anyway, along with my own power source, I have my own water purification system and sewage treatment." They strolled through the halls and came to an elevator, which traversed the mansion's four floors, including the basement and underground parking garage.

"You have an elevator in your house!?" asked Wendy, amazed yet again at what her house had to offer.

"Of course. You don't expect a lady of luxury to use the stairs now, do you? Besides, this allows me to move heavy objects from floor to floor without hiring extra help, or breaking my back trying to use the main foyer stairs for that matter." Once they were on the third floor, where the bedrooms were, Lucretia stopped outside Wendy's room. "Okay, Wendy, this is your room. The same rules apply here like back at the penthouse. My room is down the hall, so don't even think about going there. The bathroom is right over here and the other rooms are extended closets and trophy rooms."

"Thanks, Ms. Luck. I can't believe I have two rooms, and I don't have anything to put in them. This is so cool, ma'am."

"Yeah, we'll go shopping for stuff for you later, but before that, we're going to have to do a little training first. Meet me in the kitchen in thirty minutes. I'm going to get some grub and change before we start. Feel free to look around, but don't touch anything. I'll know if you do," said Lucretia, pointing to one of the many security cameras spread throughout the house. Wendy gave a nervous smile and nodded in acknowledgement before moving into her room to explore.

Once Lucretia had satiated her hunger and changed into her training outfit, she went back to the kitchen to await Wendy's arrival. To her surprise, she was already waiting for her there. "Ah, good to see that you're punctual. One less thing I have to get you accustomed to," said Lucretia.

"Actually, I was just here to get a drink, but since I'm here, I might as well wait," said Wendy.

"Okay. If you're ready, we can head on down to get a head start," said Lucretia. Wendy gave a nod and followed her into the basement.


	5. Chapter 5 - Let's Get Down to Business

Wendy continued to admire Lucretia's abode as they continued through its fancy hallways. Once the elevator reached the bottom, the doors opened to reveal her workout room, complete with all the standard types of exercise machines, including a treadmill, various weights, a bicycle machine, etc. To their right, one of the walls was completely covered in mirrors and had padded mats in front of it for doing calisthenics and weight lifting. Nearby, there was an area for combat training that had kicking and punching bags. To their left, the entire wall was made of glass which allowed them to see all the vehicles in her underground parking garage. Unlike the ones in the city, her parking garage was solid white, making the vehicles stand out even more as they were illuminated by the room's lights. Ahead of them, her armory and other storage rooms were situated.

"This way, Rook," said Lucretia as she led the way into her personal gym.

"Rook? You talking to me?" asked Wendy.

"Oh, I forgot to mention. I'll be addressing you as 'Rook'. A sort of codename for you as you train under my supervision. And of course I'm addressing you. Who else is there here? Please, use your head."

Wendy smiled apologetically. "Sorry. But why did you choose Rook?"

"I have my reasons. Now get in front of me here on the mat. Let's see what you got," said Lucretia, taking position on the padded mats in front of the mirror wall. She thought about it a lot earlier and decided to use Devan's old codename to call Wendy by. She reminded her of her deceased friend, and having the same name for her new apprentice seemed like a good idea, one to honor Devan by. She just hoped that Wendy could match up to her old partner, but she kept her expectations tamed. She had a lot to do before Wendy was anywhere near the level of expertise that Devan was at.

"What's first, ma'am?" asked Wendy.

"Close Quarters Combat, otherwise known as CQC. Let's see what you can do," said Lucretia, standing at ease in front of Wendy on the mat.

"But you already know what I can do, which isn't much."

"Just show me what you got."

Wendy readied herself and anxiously awaited the moment to strike, knowing full well that Lucretia was much more skilled than she was. She began sidestepping while keeping her eyes on her opponent. Once she was at Lucretia's side, she lashed out with a punch, but Lucretia swiftly sidestepped and grabbed a hold of her punching arm, tossing her to the ground. Wendy landed on her back with a thud, but she quickly got back to her feet. She followed up with a couple punches to her opponent's mid-section, but her foe dodged them with ease. Wendy tried to maneuver around and attack from behind; however, Lucretia caught her with a leg sweep and put her back down on the mat.

She walked over to her defeated foe and looked down at her. "What's the matter? You already out of breath?"

Wendy panted, trying to catch her breath. "Yeah…you're just too good."

"I've had practice. By the way, you've been on the streets for most of your life, right? What sorts of criminal mischief have you been involved with until know? I have a feeling that either you're not used to muggings or that the people you mug are complete pushovers." She helped Wendy to her feet and awaited her reply.

"I only did what I did in the past to survive. I just wanted to say that before I begin. In the past, I've done robberies, well, more like shoplifting. I only took low-value things, like food and maybe a shirt or two. I never robbed a store or anything like that. I didn't have the courage or nerve to pull one of those off. What else? I pickpocket…_a lot_. I broke into a few cars, trespassed a lot, committed larceny, assault and battery, disturbing the peace, destruction of property, panhandling, and I was a squatter for awhile before the police kicked us out. I also…did some prostitution and stuff like that, but I don't want to talk about it."

"Pssh, mere peanuts. Those are all petty crimes. I'm only asking because since you're training to be an assassin, I'm wondering if you have what it takes to kill, to take another person's life. I've done it plenty of times, more than I can count. It was part of my job. But you. You're still young and haven't experienced death firsthand, or have you?"

"I haven't killed anyone before, but I've seen a few people get shot up before. They were mostly nobodys hanging out in the wrong part of town or pissing off the wrong people. Even though I've never committed a major crime, I think I have what it takes to kill. If the person deserves it, or if I'm getting paid, I can kill someone no problem."

"Really? You sound so sure of yourself, but when you're in the heat of the moment, and you have the power to take a life in the palm of your hand, literally, we'll see how you do. But I like the enthusiasm and confidence. At least your willing to give it a shot."

"What's next?"

"Next, we're going to see how well you can shoot. Follow me. We're headed to my private armory," said Lucretia.

"Sweet. I can't wait to see all the guns you got," said Wendy, following after her.

"By the way, where did you get that piece of junk pistol I saw you with earlier?"

"Eh, I found it in an alley one day, so I decided to keep it. Never knew when it might come in handy."

"So you've never handled a gun before then?"

"Nope."

"That's ballsy. For all you knew, you could have shot yourself by accident. But luckily for you, I will instruct you on the _proper_ way to handle a firearm."

"Hey, you mentioned that killing was part of the job. Were you a cop or soldier before you became an assassin?"

Lucretia kept walking and looked over her shoulder at her. "It's best not to bring up that subject."

"Okay, ma'am," said Wendy, giving her an odd look.

They continued across the gym and approached the hallway leading to her gun room. Lucretia entered the passcode on the keypad and opened the door, prompting the automatic lights to turn on. The entire room was filled with firearms of all sorts, ranging from common pistols to some of the most state-of-the-art assault and sniper rifles. She had most of her weapons secured in gun cabinets, lockers, and cases, but some of her more expensive and rare weapons were displayed all around in display cases and wall mounts. Along with firearms, all her ammunition for the weapons was stored neatly in a locker dedicated solely to bullets.

"Were we are, my pride and joy," said Lucretia.

"You have so many! Wow, look at this one! It's so beautiful," said Wendy, admiring a pistol on a wall display case.

"Oh, that? That's my chrome Xan Centennial Anniversary special edition pistol. The finish and engraving is all custom and there are only five in the entire universe. I have the second one made. That's not all. Over here I have a limited edition, gold Axel Arms Model 44 magnum. The barrel is custom done and the grip has been switched out." She continued on to the lockers and looked for some weapons to bring out to the range. "Hey, hand me one of the empty bags over there," said Lucretia, pointing underneath one of the tables. Wendy complied and handed her the bag. She packed a few of her favorite weapons and a few common ones for Wendy to use. After making her firearm selections, she retrieved the appropriate ammunition for them and a few accessories for her weapons.

"Did you choose ones that are easy to use?" asked Wendy.

"Yeah. I choose some .22 weapons, so the recoil and aiming won't be as difficult, since you're a noob when it comes to guns." She and Wendy made their way outside to her shooting range. When she got there, she set down the bag and tapped on the range's control panel, activating the short-range targets. The range had targets placed at all ranges, maxing out at one thousand yards. The targets were holograms that began as blue, but turned red if they were hit. At the stall where the shooter was firing from, the target that was hit was displayed on a screen, so the shooter could see where they were hitting.

Lucretia motioned Wendy over to her as she took out a pistol from the bag. "Listen up, Rook, this is a pistol, specifically one of my favorites. It's a Blazien 18S sidearm chambered for the .45 caliber round, custom fitted with an internal laser, custom grip, and a new trigger guard. I've used this as my sidearm for years." She continued to instruct her on proper firearm handling, going over the parts of the gun, proper holding of the weapon, and the basic safety precautions used when dealing with guns. After giving her a crash course on firing a gun, she decided to give her a demonstration. She took out two pairs of ear plugs and gave Wendy a pair to use. "Okay, make sure you're locked and loaded. Make sure your hands are properly gripping the firearm. Relax and control your breathing. Aim…and fire." She pulled the trigger and hit the target out ten yards in the bull's-eye.

"Nice shot," said Wendy as she looked down range at the target.

Lucretia unloaded the rest of the magazine then placed the weapon on the table. "Now, it's your turn." She reached into the bag and pulled out the .22 pistol, removing the magazine and loading it with ammunition. After loading the last round, she placed it on the table and stepped back, allowing Wendy to shoot. "Just do as I showed you and hit the target. Aim for the closer one, the five yard target. It doesn't have to be a bull's-eye, but at least hit it."

Wendy confidently took the pistol in hand and aimed it at the target. She went through all the safety checks and procedures in her head, making sure the safety was off and that the gun was pointed in the right direction. As she raised the weapon, her hands started to shake as she nervously placed her finger on the trigger. "Will this make just as loud of a bang and kick just as hard as the gun you fired?"

"No. That fires a smaller round than mine. You won't even notice it. Just pull the trigger and find out."

Wendy swallowed her fear and looked down the gun's sights, lining them up with the target. Once she was ready, she fired the gun, hitting the target just inches away from the bull's-eye. "I hit it!" she said with delight, satisfied with her performance.

"Wow, nice shot for your first time. Keep firing. Unload the clip," said Lucretia with a smile, looking on impressed.

Wendy smiled and took aim. _'That wasn't too bad. It was kinda fun!'_ She fired again and again, missing the bull's-eye, but at least landing hits on the target. The shots were scattered all around, so she definitely needed to work on her accuracy and precision. After firing her last shot, she put down the pistol and eagerly turned to Lucretia. "What else do you got? Let's keep going!"

"All right, settle down. It's only shooting. You're not going to be like this when there is a person in the crosshairs instead of a holo-target. Anyway, let's move on to the assault rifle. I have the .22 version of the CR40, the Army's standard assault rifle. I normally use the iron sights, but you will use the red-dot sights to help you aim," said Lucretia before going over the basic points of handling a rifle. Once she explained everything to her, she fired off two rounds before handing it over to Wendy to try. "Okay, here you go. Remember, just line up the red dot with the target and you should have no problem hitting it," she said, stepping back.

Wendy took up position behind the table and shouldered the rifle, looking through the red-dot sights and at the target. Once everything was lined up, she pulled the trigger, hitting the edge of the bull's-eye. "I almost hit the bull's-eye! Did you see that!"

"Don't look at me. Focus on the target," said Lucretia.

Wendy turned back down range and fired again, hitting the bull's-eye. She continued firing, landing her shots near or on the bull's-eye. The target was about fifteen yards out, so it wasn't too hard, especially with a red-dot sight attached to the rifle. "That was great. It really relaxes you, you know?" she said, leaning the rifle against the stall's wall.

"It is pretty relaxing, but ammo isn't cheap, so I try not to vent my frustrations too often," said Lucretia with a wink. "Next, we move on to the final weapon, the sniper rifle."

"The final weapon? What about shotguns and sub-machineguns?

Lucretia stopped and gave her a stern look. "Shotguns…are for p****** who don't know how to shoot, preferring to just blast away and hope to hit something rather than taking the time to aim. I may own a shotgun or two, but that's because they're rare or have some special connotation associated with them. I never use them and you will probably never use one in the field. I never did. As for sub-machineguns, I have nothing against them, but any job a sub-machinegun can do, a rifle can do better. If you want to try one of them out, I a few in the armory."

"Oh, okay, sorry for asking," said Wendy with a weak smile.

"As I was saying, the last thing we will do today is work with a sniper rifle. Here, I have a _real_ sniper rifle, unlike the .22 that you will be using. The one I have is an Axel Arms SR42 sniper rifle, which has a cutting edge scope and bipod. It fires the .338 Lapua Magnum round. The .50 BMG cartridge is overrated and I tend to stay away from those types of rifles, since it's harder to mask your location using such a big gun. I only use a .50 cal if I have to pierce armor plating, like on vehicles, but even then, I usually find another way to get the target." She took the rifle and, like the other previous weapons, showed Wendy how it worked before demonstrating it. For this one, she decided to dazzle her with a thousand yard shot. She selected the appropriate distance which made a target pop up one thousand yards down range.

"Where's the target? I can't see it," said Wendy, struggling to try and spot the target.

"That's because it's one thousand yards down range. Just look at the screen and watch where the bullet hits the target," said Lucretia as she lay prone on the ground, flipping out the bipods and adjusting her scope. The rifle was already adjusted for one thousand yards, so she didn't take long to get ready. Wendy watch in anticipation as Lucretia slowed her breathing and focused on the target. Just as Wendy was about to say something, Lucretia fired, hitting the target dead center.

She jumped at the sudden sound of the shot then looked over at the screen, noticing where she hit. "Wow, ma'am, you hit it that well from this far out?"

"Yeah. I've done this shot dozens of times. I've gotten used to it. At least the target wasn't moving, those types of shots are a b****," said Lucretia, standing back up. She placed her rifle down and picked up the .22 rifle with a basic scope and bipod. "Here you go. For you…I'll set the target for twenty yards. Let's see how you do with that."

Wendy gave her a nod and took the rifle, going just as Lucretia did. She shouldered the weapon and looked through the scope, searching for the target. Once she found it, she quickly placed the crosshairs of over the target's center and pulled the trigger. "Did I hit it?" she asked.

"Nope. Try again," said Lucretia.

Wendy took aim again and fired, missing the target once more. She fire off another round, then another, but only managed to nick the edge of the target. "Why can't I hit it?"

"Hmm…maybe the scope isn't zeroed in. Here, let me see that." Wendy handed the rifle over and remained on the ground, pouting at her lack of success. Lucretia took the rifle and didn't even bother to go prone to shoot. At that range, it was easy enough to hit the target standing up. She peered through the scope and fired, hitting the target, but a few inches away from the bull's-eye. "Eh, it's a bit off. Let me adjust it…and there. Try again," she said, handing back the rifle.

Wendy took the rifle and aimed through the scope. She fired and hit the target, but barely. She fired off the last two shots and didn't fare much better. "Damn it! I did so well with the other two guns. Why not this one!?" she said, standing back up.

"Well, the sniper rifle is the assassin's tool-of-trade. Maybe you're just tired. You've been through a lot today. Why don't you go inside and wash up? We're done for today and I'll finish up here. You did good, Rook. Tomorrow, we'll celebrate with a shopping spree, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks again, ma'am, for all of this," said Wendy with a smile.

"No problem. I'll make you an assassin yet," said Lucretia as she began checking the weapons before packing them away. Wendy made her way back inside while Lucretia stayed behind to clean up. _'Not bad for her first time. With time and a lot of hard work, she might just be able to pull this off. Well, I asked for a change of pace, and now I have it.' _She took her bag of guns and slung it over her shoulder along with the rifles, heading back to her armory to drop it all off. She placed everything back in its place, but before heading back upstairs, she decided to stop by the sanitation closet.

She opened the door only to find mops, brooms, and other cleaning supplies stored on two shelves to her right and left. She looked around to see that she was alone and stepped inside, closing the door behind her. The closet had a light in it, so it wasn't entirely pitch black when she shut the door. She approached the back walk, which had three hooks on it to hang cleaning tools, and pulled on the left one. The wall shifted and slid to the left, revealing a hidden door with a holo-keypad. "_Identification, please_," said the automated security system.

"Ren, Lucretia," she said, placing her hand on the scanner. Once her identification was confirmed, she typed in the passcode and walked through the door, entering into a fully-furnished hallway, complete with lights and a modern-style décor. The hallway looked like another in her house. Once she was through, the door closed and the wall reverted back to its default state. Lucretia walked down the hallway for a few yards and came to another door, which only needed another passcode to enter. She typed in the second passcode and found herself in a storage room with the same décor as the rest of her house.

In the center of the room, there was a desk that she made her way over to. Along with the desk, there was a wardrobe, gun locker, and several shelves filled with items from her past. The room was where she kept her most intimate secrets, mostly the ones revealing her true identity as the former Major Lucretia Ren of the Cornerian Crimzon Roses. Her military uniforms were displayed on full-bodied mannequins that were shaped in her image. She had her service dress on one and her combat uniform displayed on the other. Each of the mannequins was complete with all her gear, accessories, headgear, and footwear that was associated with each uniform. In the weapons locker, she had all her firearms stored there from when she was a Crimzon Rose. She didn't want a single trace of her old life to be found in her penthouse or even in the upper mansion, so she moved everything to her secure, secret room. The walls had pictures of her from all points of her life before her defection. She had pictures of her family, of her and her sister, and of her during many parts of her military career. On the shelves, she displayed many awards and distinctions she had earned while in the academy and on active duty. In the wardrobe, she kept an extra stash of cash and several personal items from her previous life.

Lucretia walked along the walls of the room, looking at all the pictures and several items from her past. She stopped at her desk, which had a few pieces of paper and a framed picture of her and Devan. She picked up the picture and sat at the desk, sobbing at the memory of her old partner. She spent a good thirty minutes or so, sitting in her chair reflecting on her life. Once she was done reminiscing, she made her way back up to the house to get ready to turn in for the night.

As she was walking towards her room, she ran into Wendy. "Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?" asked Wendy after coming out of the bathroom.

"Yeah, what is it?" asked Lucretia.

"Why are there cameras in the bathroom? As I was taking a shower, I happened to notice one looked right down at me. Do you make a habit of spying on people as they bath?" asked Wendy with a furrowed eyebrow.

"Well, I never imagined having people over at my house. Those cameras are mostly for me as a security measure. That way, I can see people sneaking up on me."

"I thought you said you never had guests over?"

"And I never said the people I'm watching out for were invited in the first place. But don't worry. I won't be peeping on you as you use the bathroom. I don't swing that way," said Lucretia with a wink before continuing into her bedroom.

#

The next morning, they awoke and got ready for a day of shopping and leisurely living. Lucretia planned on bringing Wendy into the city to visit the Oak Shopping Mall there, a well-known place for buying anything that came to mind.

"So how did you sleep?" asked Lucretia as Wendy appeared in the kitchen. She was already there having breakfast when she arrived.

"Very good, ma'am. I haven't slept like that in years," said Wendy with a content smile.

She made her way to the fridge and began to look for food, but Lucretia already had something made for her. "I've already made you breakfast. It's over there next to the stove."

Wendy looked over to find a plate of sausage and eggs waiting for her with a side of buttered toast. "Wow, thank you, ma'am." She took the plate and sat down next to her at the counter. "Where we off to today?" she asked, sampling the eggs.

"We're headed into the city. There's a mall there, Oak Shopping Mall, and it's quite the place to go to buy whatever you're looking for. You can find clothes, furniture, not that you need any of that, miscellaneous decorations for your room, perfumes, beauty stuff, and they even have a store there that sells knives and swords, if you're into that kind of stuff," said Lucretia.

Wendy smiled at the thought of buying stuff for herself as she ate. She couldn't remember the last time she owned anything that was purchased with her own money, aside from the usual dollar menu meal from a fast food restaurant. They continued to talk about their excursion as they ate, and when they were ready to go, they made their way to the garage in the basement. Lucretia had quite a few vehicles displayed down there, ranging from old classic sports cars to the latest and most technologically advanced super cars. Most of them were colored red, as that was her favorite color, but some had other color schemes that the classic cars were most famously known for. That day, Lucretia chose to drive one of her luxury sedans, as she figured she would have to bring a lot of stuff back from their day of shopping.

"So what kind of music do you like to listen to?" asked Lucretia as they got into the car.

"Um, I don't really listen to music much. I don't have an MP7 player, remember?"

"Here, listen to some of this," said Lucretia, playing her personal playlist on the car's stereo; she mainly listened to dubstep and rave genres of music. Wendy didn't mind the beat and nodded her head along with the music. Lucretia pressed the button that opened the garage door and drove out, making her way onto the road that led into the city.

The drive there was tranquil, as they were the only ones on the road. They drove with their windows down, allowing the wind to flow through their hair. As they approached the city limits, they began seeing more activity on the roads. Unlike they city Wendy was used to, Bower City, which was an older, dirtier city full of vice and corruption, Orelya was a newer city complete with the latest public technologies and services. Unlike the trash-ridden streets of Bower City, Orelya's streets and sidewalks were completely clean and well maintained. When they arrived at the mall near the center of the city, they parked at one of the garages adjacent to the mall and got out, making their way inside.

"I am so excited! I'm going into the first store I see!" said Wendy.

"Calm down, sheesh. It's only shopping," said Lucretia as she turned off the car. She was dressed in one of her sleek suits and her wallet stashed away in her inner coat pocket. Wendy got out of the car and was still dressed in the same rags Lucretia found her in. The contrast between their two outfits was drastic, but neither of them minded as they proceeded into the mall together.

Wendy looked around and spotted a shoe store first to her left. "Let's head this way. These shoes are killing me."

"Lead the way. I'm just here to tag along," said Lucretia, following Wendy into the shoe store. The two of them spent the day going from store to store, buying whatever came to mind. Wendy bought various pieces of clothing and shoes for herself, along with some personal items for her two rooms. She spent a good portion of the money given to her by Lucretia, but she didn't go too spend-happy and saved about a quarter of her money for an emergency. They had to make several trips back to the car to unload their bags before continuing on. After going through all the stores, and racking up a hefty bill, they decided to call it a day and head back home. The back seat and trunk were filled to capacity, almost blocking the rear window completely.

#

He lit his second cigarette as he continued to watch the car, making sure he was out of sight and incognito. Once he saw Lucretia and Wendy get into their vehicle and start it up, he got on his phone and called a friend. "Hey, they're getting ready to leave," he said.

"Good. We're moving into position now," said the voice on the other end.

The man hung up and watched as they left the parking garage, making his way to his own vehicle.

#

"That was fun, wouldn't you say?" asked Lucretia as they sped along down the highway, making an exit that led to back her private road to her mansion.

"Yeah, it was fun. I've got some many new clothes to wear now!" said Wendy, looking at all the bags in the back.

"I see you're already wearing one of your new outfits. What happened to your old clothes?"

"I tossed them. They weren't even mine to begin with anyway."

"Yeah. Wait…" she looked into the rearview mirror and saw a car tailing them. They were already on her private road, so no one should be there except them.

"What is it, ma'am?" asked Wendy.

"We're being followed."

"By who? The police!?" she asked, turning around to look through the rear window.

"Not likely. This isn't how the police operate. If they want something, they'll just flat out ask for it. They wouldn't tail me down a private road like this. Don't turn around. Pretend we don't notice him," said Lucretia. She opened up the storage compartment between the two front seats and pulled out a pistol, fully loaded and ready to fire.

"What are you going to do?"

"Just stay calm and follow my lead." Lucretia slowed the car down and pulled off to the side, keeping an eye on the vehicle behind them. The car tailing them also slowed down and followed suit. She checked her sidearm and placed it in the back of her pants, stepping out of the car. As she was getting out, so did Wendy and the man from the other vehicle. "Hey, brah, what's the big deal? This is a private road, you know?" said Lucretia, walking towards the man.

Before she could take another step, the man drew a pistol and shot her in the chest. "Ma'am!" said Wendy as she looked on in fright at the gunman in front of her.

"Get your hands up! Move away from the car!" said the man as he approached Wendy. He walked past Lucretia, who was still on the ground lying motionless. Wendy trembled as the man approached her, his gun still aimed right at her.

"Hey, buddy." As the man turned around, Lucretia shot him in the shoulder, causing him to drop his weapon. The man cried in pain as she followed up with two shots to his knees, incapacitating him. She rushed over to him and kicked his gun away, keeping hers aimed as his head.

"Ms. Luck!" said Wendy as she hurried over to her, relieved that she was still alive. "Are you hurt?"

"Naw. My vest blocked the shot," said Lucretia, patting her chest.

"You have a bullet-proof vest on?"

"A '_bullet-resistant_' vest. Common misconception. But yeah, I'm fine, which is much more than I can say for this guy." She crouched down and placed her pistol against his forehead. "So, buddy, what are you doing on my private road, here?"

"You b****!" said the guy, still writhing in pain from his gunshot wounds.

"Now now, I'm the one with the gun. I ask the questions, you answer them, unless you want me to shoot you again?"

The main paused to think it over then responded. "We planned to hold you hostage to gain access to your mansion."

"Why, so you can rob me clean? And who is this _we_?"

"If I tell you everything, you promise not to kill me?"

"Yes. I promise. I'll even call a medical transport to airlift you out of here."

"Ms. Luck, you don't mean that, do you!? This guy tried to kill you," said Wendy in protest.

"Calm down. I'll take care of anything. So, guy, as you were saying?" asked Lucretia.

"There are three of us. I was watching your car while you were at the mall, and once you planned to leave, I told my two friends to get into position. They're up the road posing as two guys whose car broke down."

"How did you know of this place and who to look out for?"

The man tried to sit up, but couldn't due to the pain. "I helped build your house. I figured that with all the security being added, there must be something worth stealing inside. Not to mention all the customizations to the garage and basement. I figured you were a rich gal with expensive tastes."

"You piece of s***! You were all vowed to secrecy about that project. Isn't that a company policy!?" said Lucretia, kicking the man. "So let me get this straight. There are two guys up the road, who are probably armed as well, and they're trying to hold me hostage as I take them into my house, correct?" The man nodded. "And there are three of you in total, with you being the third, right?" He nodded again. "Well then, it seems you've exhausted your usefulness. Wendy, would you kindly have the honor?" she asked, handing her the pistol.

"What do you want me to do with that?"

"Simple. I want you to kill him."

The wounded man jerked with anger. "I thought we had a deal!"

"Oh, shut up. I don't make deals with scum like you. I only kill them," said Lucretia.

Wendy looked at the weapon in Lucretia's hand and took it. "That a girl, Wendy. Now one shot, right through his forehead. This will prove if you have the guts to become an assassin and continue training under my supervision," said Lucretia.

"Well, he did try to kill us," said Wendy. She took the pistol and aimed it at the man's head, ignoring his tears and cries for mercy. Without hesitation, she shot once, blowing a hole in the man's head. "Wow, that was actually pretty…exciting," she said after taking the man's life.

Lucretia smiled, crossing her arms. "It is. Shoot him again. Have at it." Wendy smiled also and shot the dead man in the chest, unloading the entire magazine into his lifeless body. Once she was done, she handed Lucretia back her gun. "All right, you had your fun. Now check him," she said.

"Check him?" asked Wendy.

"Yeah. Cash, credit cards, anything that could be useful," said Lucretia.

Wendy complied and check the corpse's pockets, finding his wallet and an extra magazine. While she was checking the guy, Lucretia walked off and picked up his gun, the one she kicked away earlier. "I only found his wallet and some ammo. Had twenty credits on him," said Wendy.

"Eh, better than mothering. And we can sell his car later. Here, this is yours," said Lucretia, handing the man's pistol to her.

"For me?"

"Yup. It's a start to your very own gun collection."

Wendy took it and looked it over. "Thank you, ma'am. So now what do we do?"

Lucretia looked around and came up with a plan. "The guy said that there are two guys down the road, waiting to pounce on us. They're probably armed. So let's do this..." She walked back to her car and came to the trunk. "Wendy, can you hit the trunk release by the front seat?" She complied and went to the driver's seat, releasing the trunk. Lucretia opened it up and began taking out the bags. "Hey, Wendy, help me move these bags out of the way."

She went to help Lucretia and took the bags she was taking out. "What are you looking for?"

"You'll see." Once most of the bags were out, Lucretia was able to gain access to the compartment underneath the false bottom to the trunk. She lifted the bottom up, revealing a sniper rifle broken down into its main parts. Along with the rifle, there was the gun's magazine, fully loaded, and a spotter's scope. She took out the parts and began to assemble the rifle.

"You have a rifle in the trunk. Do all of your cars have sniper rifles in them?"

"Some do. Just the sedans, not the classics or sports cars. I wouldn't even dare modifying one of the classics with a compartment to hold a rifle."

"So what are you planning to do? Shoot them?"

"Precisely," said Lucretia, closing the trunk and taking the rifle and scope in hand. "And you're coming with me. We're going on a little training excursion to take out these guys from afar. I'll do the shooting and you'll just be observing, just to get a feel for this sort of thing."

"What about all this?" asked Wendy, looking at the cars and the corpse on the ground.

"Don't worry about it. We're in the middle of nowhere. The car will be fine. C'mon, let's get a move on."

Wendy looked at her clothes then followed behind her. "Man, I'm going to get my clothes all dirtied up."

They trekked through the plains moving parallel to the road at a distance. Lucretia used the spotter's scope to scout ahead and to make sure they didn't stray too far from the road. Eventually, she spotted a SUV by the roadside, about a mile from her property.

"They're up ahead. Time to set up shop," said Lucretia as she unslung her rifle and went prone on the ground. Wendy reluctantly laid down next to her on her brand new outfit. Lucretia handed her the spotter's scope and set up her rifle on the bipod. "Do you know how to use that?" she asked.

"Just look through it, right?"

"Basically. I've already adjusted the range, so you should be able to easily see them from here. Just keep watch and listen to me."

Wendy looked through the scope while Lucretia shouldered her weapon, looking through her rifle's scope. She spotted the two men standing by the car. They were both out in the open, which made the shots much easier. She wasn't too far away, about three hundred fifty yards out.

"I see them. Who are you going to take out first?" asked Wendy.

"The guy on the left. He's the most obstructed by the vehicle. The other guy is an easy shot, so I'll hit him second." Lucretia took aim and fired, hitting the guy on the left straight through the head. His partner looked over in confusion to see him slump to the ground. As he looked in the distance to see where the shot came from, a second shot was heard. In a matter of a couple seconds, they were both on the ground, dead.

"Nice shooting," said Wendy as she observed through her scope.

"It wasn't too hard. Now let's get back and get the cars to the mansion. Do you know how to drive?"

"A little."

"As long as you can get the car back to the property, then that's fine," said Lucretia as she got up.

They made their way back to the cars and prepared to head back home. Lucretia disassembled her rifle and put everything back into the trunk. Once everything was loaded, she got back in her car while Wendy got into the vehicle that was trailing them. Lucretia decided to just leave the body there and burry it out somewhere later. On the way back home, they passed the SUV and the two men she shot earlier. They checked the bodies and found pistols, money, and ammunition on them. Since the handguns were the same as the one Wendy had already, Lucretia decided to just sell them along with the vehicles. Once back home, she parked her sedan back in the garage and unloaded the bags. Wendy remained outside in the car, waiting for Lucretia to come back out so they could drive to the SUV. Once all the vehicles and bodies were taken care of, the two of them took showers and cleaned up before having dinner and going through their new goods.


	6. Chapter 6 - Busted

It had been six years since Lucretia first took Wendy under her tutelage to become a galaxy-renowned assassin. Along the way, the two felons became close friends as Wendy picked up the tools-of-the-trade quickly. After just a couple of months, Lucretia brought her on her first mission, which was an easy long-range assassination. She stuck to her training and was able to pull off the job all by herself, with Lucretia acting as a backup.

Not only did they garner fame in the criminal underworld as two of the best female assassins, Lucretia and Wendy also became renown in the public sphere. Lucretia continued to donate to charities and public foundations with Wendy acting as her personal assistant. During the off hours, they lived a life of luxury together, gaining notoriety as a couple of happy, go-lucky gamblers and spendthrifts; however, like with all good things, nothing lasted forever.

"Hahaha! Winner winner, fancy dinner!" said Lucretia as she got another blackjack at the Blackjack table.

"Wow, ma'am. You're on a roll," said Wendy, looking over her shoulder as she stood behind her.

"I know. C'mon, why don't you take a seat? Have some fun."

"Blackjack isn't my game. I'm more of a Roulette and Craps player. Card games are just too complicated for me," said Wendy with a smile.

"Suit yourself," said Lucretia, returning to the game.

"Say, shouldn't we be heading over to meet Fowler? It's almost time to meet up with him."

Lucretia looked at her watch and decided she was right. "I guess so. Meet me outside and get the car. Just let me cash all this out," she said. She played her last hand and took her chips, tipping the dealer with a twenty credit chip. While Wendy went out to get the car from the valet, Lucretia made her way over to the chip exchange to cash out.

"Looks like you did well again, Ms. Luck," said the teller as she took Lucretia's chips from her.

"What can I say? I'm good at what I do. And a bit of luck doesn't hurt," said Lucretia with a smile. The teller deposited her winnings into her bank account and handed her a receipt. She thanked the teller and went outside to rendezvous with Wendy, who already had the car and was sitting in the driver's seat, ready to head on out.

"How much did you win, ma'am?" asked Wendy as Lucretia got into the car.

"I tripled my starting amount so…about fifty thousand credits. Not bad, wouldn't you say?" said Lucretia with a wink. Wendy put the car into drive and sped out of the parking lot, heading to the storage unit that contained their mission gear and vehicle.

When they got there, they parked the car in the unit and closed the garage door, making sure they were completely alone before getting changed. The unit was big enough to hold three vehicles, so they had ample room to store their two vehicles plus weapon and ammunition lockers. Each of them pulled out a duffel bag from the trunk of another vehicle, a basic looking black sedan, which was already parked in there.

"So where are we meeting Fowler this time?" asked Wendy as she began to disrobe.

"Bailey's Bar. Says he got another job for us, so I hope it's a good one," said Lucretia as she unzipped her bag and took out her Lady Luck outfit.

The two of them got changed into their alter-ego outfits and got into the black sedan. Like Lucretia, who went by the name of Lady Luck, Wendy also chose a name for herself. She decided to work under the name of Lady Rook, the codename Lucretia first gave her while on the job. She wore a similar outfit like Lucretia's, but she added her own personal flair to it. Before they left the garage, Lucretia turned on her personal portable security jammer, which distorted all security camera feeds when she was near them. When they were ready to go, she opened up the garage door and drove out.

"Hey, Devan, how long do you plan on being an assassin and taking these jobs?" asked Wendy out of the blue.

"As long as my body will allow. Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering. Eventually, you're going to retire, but I may not be ready to retire just yet. I might want to continue this lifestyle, so I'm just wondering how long I have to wait before I get to go solo."

Lucretia smiled at her partner's eagerness to be independent. "So eager to break free from the master and apprentice relationship, are we? Well, I'm not about to stop anytime soon, so I'll still be around. Hey, you're still my apprentice and have a lot to learn, so just enjoy it while it lasts." She continued driving and arrived to the bar, parking in front.

When they made their way inside, Fowler was sitting at a table when they arrived, reclined in his chair and smoking a cigarette. "Good of you to join me," he said, blowing out some smoke.

"So, what have you got for us today?" asked Lucretia, taking a seat across from him next to Wendy.

"First off, let me just say how impressed I am with the last job you did. That was no cake walk," he said.

"Yeah. It was tricky, but I got it done, like always," said Lucretia with a conceited smirk.

"Yes, well, I've got another job for you, and this one is much easier than the last, in my opinion."

"Lay it on me," said Lucretia.

"It's a simple assassination job. Kill the guy by any means necessary, which in your case probably means death by sniper rifle. Unless you want to try something new and get creative?"

"I think I'll just stick to what I know."

"Understood. As I was saying, the guy you have to kill is some politician running for mayor. He's going to be making a public speech in the park a week from now. You know Brent Flintlock?" asked Fowler.

Lucretia shook her head, not liking what she was hearing. "I thought I made it clear a long time ago. I don't…kill…politicians," she said, crossing her arms.

"Why not? The guy's probably going to be crooked anyway. It's always the same here," said Fowler.

"I just don't like killing the people that make this city run. Sure, I may kill police officers, security guards, and the occasional soldier now and then, but the city can live without a few of them. If I start taking out the people in power, the city is going to fall apart and I'm going to lose the life I have because anarchy is running through the streets."

"He isn't a politician…yet. There are others running besides him. All the client wants is the elimination of just that one." Lucretia thought it over, trying to decide if she wanted the job or not.

Before she could give her answer, Wendy spoke up on her behalf. "We'll take it," she said. Lucretia slowly looked over at her, but she looked back with a content smile.

"Okay. I'll be sending you the specifics once I get back," said Fowler as he stood up.

Lucretia was about to stop him, but Wendy grabbed her arm and urged her not to speak. "What are you doing!? I was about to pass on the job, Wendy!" said Lucretia in a hushed voice once he was gone.

"C'mon, Devan, we can do this job. We need to start expanding our field of work."

"You know, there is a reason why we haven't been caught yet, and that reason is a strict set of rules that I have adhered to since I began this life. You start veering from that path, and you're bound to end up dead or in jail."

"And what's so bad about killing politicians? Like you said, you've killed police and soldiers before, how is this any different?" asked Wendy.

"The difference is that they die all the time. It's a risk acknowledged to come with the job. Politicians aren't supposed to be dying by gunshot wounds. Stuff like that draws attention, unwanted attention. This job isn't like the others, despite how easy it is."

"Just give it a shot. One job. One time. A clean in-and-out shot from a random high-rise. Shouldn't be a problem. We've done jobs like this before."

Lucretia continued to think about the job, annoyed that she had to do a job she didn't want. "Fine. We'll do it, but we have to be EXTRA careful this time. I don't want to get caught, got it?" The two of them continued to talk about the job while they had a couple of drinks.

#

Over the next few days, Lucretia and Wendy spent their time preparing for the job, scoping out viable firing positions and practicing for the shot on Alkion. When it came time for the assassination, they went to the storage unit and changed into their mission gear. As they were gearing up, they went over the mission specifics in their head, and when they were ready, they got into the black sedan and headed towards their firing position. As they grew near, Lucretia pulled into a random back alley and stopped.

"Why are we stopping? You're not going to park here, are you?" asked Wendy.

Lucretia kept her hands on the wheel then turned to Wendy. "Earlier you said you wanted to do more solo-ops, right?

"Yeah, but I was thinking about doing that when you retire. I mean, I wouldn't mind doing them now, but you're still my teacher and you lead our jobs. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I'm still not feeling so hot about the job. If you want to do it, this is your chance you get a taste of going solo. The mission is easy enough. If you like it, you can do more by yourself, but I'll still get a small percentage. If you don't like it, we'll just drop the topic, okay?"

"You mean it? I can go in alone?" asked Wendy. Lucretia nodded. "Wow, thanks, Devan. I won't let you down," she said.

"I'll drop you off here and pick you up at this same exact location when you're done. I'll be chilling at the penthouse until then," said Lucretia. Wendy exited the vehicle and took her cello case from the trunk, which acted as a covert gun case for her rifle. She waved goodbye as Lucretia drove off, heading back to the penthouse.

'_She'll be fine. I've trained her well and taught her everything I know. We've pulled off similar shots in highly dense urban areas before. No problem.' _Lucretia sighed and continued to focus on driving. _'I just hope nothing goes wrong. She's been a good friend and I'd hate to lose another.'_

A couple hours passed as Lucretia relaxed in her penthouse, waiting for the call from Wendy. She had a drink or two and just reclined on her couch, watching television. She changed out of her mission uniform and left it in a duffel bag, stashed away in the trunk of the black sedan in her garage. She was wearing nothing but her underwear and a silk robe, sipping on some wine.

"What's taking her so long? She should've been done by now…" said Lucretia, swishing the wine in her glass.

#

_Thirty minutes ago…_

"Finally, I think it's starting," said Wendy as she looked through her scope.

She was situated on top of a hotel bordering the edge of the park, lying prone between two industrial pipes. She flipped up the bipod and adjusted her scope. The pulpit and stage was already set, so she had some time to get adjusted before her target came on stage. There was a large crowd of people around the stage, but it didn't hinder her shot any. Fortunately for her, there were no trees or foliage in the way from where she was situated, so she had a clear shot. It couldn't be any easier. The target was fully exposed, she had a clear line of sight, and she was well hidden at a distance. She had every advantage. It was as if it was too good of a shot, but she forced any doubts out of her mind.

The crowd cheered as her target grew nearer, so she shouldered the weapon and got ready. "There he is…" she said under her breath, watching as he took center stage from behind the curtain. She took aim, closing one eye as she peered through the scope, placing the crosshair right in the middle of his forehead.

"Sorry, it's nothing personal." She pulled the trigger and fired her rifle, except her target didn't fall dead with his brains splattered all over the stage. Instead, her target just flinched, looking at the projectile lodged in the bullet-resistant glass he was surrounded in. Immediately, security and police flooded the area, moving the official to safety as they searched for the sniper.

"Uh oh, that's not good." Suddenly, she heard a dropship in the distance headed straight for her location. It turned on the spotlights and exposed her position. "S***! This is _NOT_ good." She picked up her rifle and sprinted towards the roof access door.

"Sir, I only saw one sniper. What do you want to do?" asked the dropship pilot.

"We'll continue the pursuit on the ground. Take us over the roof. Boxer, you've got point," said the leader of the unit sent to catch Lady Luck, but in the case, Wendy. The dropship hovered over the building she was in and opened its side doors, letting a squad of soldiers rappel onto the roof. The squad on the roof hurried into the staircase and followed behind her.

#

'_F***! I knew that shot was too good to be true. Damn it, I should've listened to Devan. I should've listened!'_ she thought as she hurried down the stairs. She got out her phone and called Lucretia to tell her the news.

Lucretia noticed her phone ringing and picked it up, assuming Wendy was done with the mission. "What took you so long? Need pick up?"

After finishing her sentence, she held the phone away from her ear as Wendy began yelling into her phone. "Devan! It was a setup! They knew we were coming!" she said.

"Whoa, hold on there. What's happening? Are you okay?" asked Lucretia, standing up.

"Right now…I'm being pursued by the military…and police. I'm in a stairwell…heading down to the ground floor from the firing position. So far I haven't been fired at." She was panting as she spoke, hurrying down the flights of stairs as fast as she could. "Wait, hold on…F***!" She hung up and pocketed her phone as the soldiers above fired off a couple shots at her.

"Wendy? Wendy!?" Lucretia looked at her phone and tried calling her again. She didn't pick up.

Wendy burst out of the staircase and found herself on the ground floor. Just as she left the stairwell, she came in contact with two police officers. She quickly drew her rifle and opened fire, hitting both of them in the chest. As they fell to the ground, she attracted the attention of other officers there. They drew their pistols and fired at her, almost hitting her in vital areas on a few occasions. She took a few hits in the chest, but her vest saved her from getting mortally wounded.

'_Damn it, now what!?'_ She looked around and headed into another staircase, heading back upstairs to see if she could find another way out. As she was climbing up the stairs, she heard one of the soldiers getting closer from above. She cursed to herself and exited onto the current floor she was on, looking behind her to make sure she wasn't being followed. She drew her sidearm and kept it aimed at the door, just waiting for someone to come through. After waiting a few seconds, she lowered her weapon. Just as she did, one of the soldiers pursuing her burst through the door with her weapon at the ready. Wendy quickly aimed her pistol and fired, as did the soldier in front of her. They both landed a few hits on each other, but each of them was wearing body armor, so they weren't injured too badly. Seeking cover, she rammed through the first door she could and found herself in an employee laundry room with no way out.

"S***!" She looked around then poked her head out of the door, firing off a couple more shots down the hall. The squad of soldiers was already out of the staircase and in the hallway, taking cover as she fired. She spent her clip and went back inside, frantically looking around. She noticed the laundry shoot and decided that it was the only way to avoid capture. She tossed her rifle away and opened up the chute, wiggling herself into the wall. Just as she was almost fully inside, one of her pursuers entered the room and fired off a round, clipping her ear. Wendy let go of the chute and plummeted down a few floors, arriving down into the sublevels where all the behind the scenes activity of the hotel was conducted.

"Where did she go?" asked the squad leader.

"Down the chute. I can fit in the chute. I'll go after her," said Boxer, hurrying over to the chute.

"We'll meet you streetside," said the squad leader, taking the rest of the soldiers out of the room.

Wendy landed hard in a metal hamper, which barely had any linen in it to cushion her fall. She cursed loudly as employees in the room ran away at the sight of her drawing her sidearm. Getting to her feet, she tumbled out of the container and landed on the ground with a thud. As she tried to stand up, her left leg stung with pain; it appeared she sprained it during the fall through the laundry chute. She made it a few feet away from the bin until she heard another thud as Boxer landed behind her. Without hesitation, Wendy quickly raised her gun and fired at the soldier, but she ducked down into the bin. Her rounds ricocheted off of the metal container, protecting the soldier from harm. Wendy didn't waste any time and hurried out of the room, taking a hallway down to a loading bay which led outside. The soldier jumped out of the bin and continued her pursuit.

After running through the back alleys and side streets, Wendy got out her phone and called Lucretia again. Lucretia was pacing back and forth in her penthouse, contemplating what to do. Once her phone rang again, she anxiously picked it up. "Wendy!? Where are you? Are you hurt!?"

"I don't know where I am! I've been running for blocks now! They're still behind me. I'm beat up pretty badly. Been shot quite a few times already and my leg's bruised to h***," said Wendy.

"Just hold on, I'm coming to get you." Before Wendy could say anything else, she hung up and hurried to her door. She didn't even bother changing and slipped on a pair of slippers and tied her robe shut. She made her way down to the lobby and hurried into the garage to get changed into her disguise. While she was getting ready, her phone rang again. She had just finished getting changed and answered her phone. "Wendy, where are you? I'm already at the car," she said, pulling her keys out of her pocket.

It took a few moments until she responded. She was struggling to breath and the only thing Lucretia could hear for the first few seconds was panting. "I'm…already in the garage."

"You mean here? You're at Banks Tower!?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Devan. I didn't know where else to go…"

"Just hold on. I'll be right out." She hung up and turned on her security scrambler, rushing out the door to help Wendy. She ran up the ramp and saw her limping her way towards her. She sprinted over to her and caught her as the fatigue from the escape took its toll on Wendy's body. She was dripping blood from several gunshot wounds she sustained during the run back. One of the bullets found its way past the vest and hit her in her upper chest, near her neck.

"Devan…I'm sorry," said Wendy, looking into Lucretia's eyes.

Lucretia was growing teary eyed as she held her partner in her arms. "Stay with me. I'll get you patched up. You can't die. I won't let it."

Wendy smiled and placed her hand on Lucretia's cheek. "You didn't let me die. You gave me life, and for that, I thank you." Her eyes began to close and her arm fell limp, falling back down by her side.

"Wendy, wake up…you can't die!" said Lucretia, trying to shake her awake. It was no use. She had already passed away due to her wounds. She sat there for a moment, holding her friend close as she wept. Just as she was about to stand up, the soldier pursuing her caught up and saw Lucretia standing over Wendy's dead body.

"You, put your hands where I can see them," said the soldier, moving closer to Lucretia with her pistol aimed at her.

"You...are you the one that killed Wendy?" asked Lucretia, gritting her teeth as she glared at the advancing soldier. The two of them were within ten feet of each other, each keeping their eyes focused on each other.

"Lady Luck, I presume?" Lucretia remained silent and defiant. "I'll take that as a yes. And to answer your question, most likely. I was the one chasing her down and shooting at her. I'm just surprised she made it all the way here."

"You're going to pay for this," said Lucretia, forming her hands into tight fists.

"I doubt it. Now turn around and get your hands on your head. My superior would like to have a few words with you," said Boxer as she moved to detain her. Lucretia turned around and placed her hands on her head.

"I just have one question before you take me in. How did the Cerillian Knights know of the hit?"

"You know us?"

"Your uniform is unmistakable. You're a Cerillian Knight all right, the scourge of the underworld."

"I'm flattered you're familiar with us. Well, one of your contacts ratted you two out. One of the local officers had a source that notified us of the planned assassination. All we had to do was wait. We hoped to get you in the beginning, but your partner here was there instead. Probably would've been still alive if you were there with her." Just as the knight was about to reach out to grab Lucretia, she quickly turned around and knocked the pistol out of her hand. The knight reacted swiftly and tried to detain her by force, but she was no pushover. Even though her specialty was sniping, Lucretia was a formidable fighter back in the academy, focusing on the style of Krav Maga. The two were evenly matched as Lucretia recognized the knight's fighting style, exchanging blows between each other in the parking garage.

Eventually, Lucretia got in a lucky hit and knocked the knight back. She used the moment to regain her footing and prepared to advance. "You're pretty good. And I recognize that style of yours, you know? A mixture of boxing and techniques taught by the Crimzon Roses, right? I guess that's how you got your codename, eh, Boxer?"

The knight was caught off guard by her remark, surprised at her familiarity with her moves. "How are you familiar with Crimzon Rose fighting style?"

"I've been around, and my sister was a boxer, so I know how to counter everything you can throw at me," said Lucretia with a cocky smirk.

"Oh yeah? Try me," said Boxer. She began to sidestep as did Lucretia, moving in the opposite direction as they began circling each other. Seeing her chance, the knight struck first, executing a side kick to Lucretia's midsection. Lucretia saw it coming and easily countered it by grabbing a hold of her leg; but that was what the knight was hoping for. While she was too busy trying to deal with the kick, the knight pulled out a knife and swiped at Lucretia. She let go of her opponent and leapt backwards, dodging the strike. The knight kept on the pressure and continued her assault.

Just as Boxer lashed forward with another attack, Lucretia grabbed a hold of her arm and twisted it, disarming her of the knife. As she cried in pain, Lucretia kicked her in the stomach then grappled her in a head lock, gripping her neck tighter with her arm. The knight struggled for air, gasping as her arms tried to pry Lucretia away from her. It was no use though and with a firm jerk, Lucretia broke her neck, releasing her grip as she fell to the ground.

She took a moment to catch her breath as she looked at her defeated foe. She looked around to make sure no other knights were about and took a brief moment to check her body. She took the knight's wallet and pulled out her ID, instantly recognizing the name and picture. She removed the knight's face mask and compared the picture to her face. "Oh. It's you. I remember you. You're the prodigy that always thought she had a chip on her shoulder. Well guess what? My sister _is_ the better boxer." She threw the ID back at the corpse and didn't waste any more time hanging around.

She hurried back to her garage and started up the car, backing out and heading for the entrance. As she passed by Wendy's body, she took a brief moment to look at her one last time before leaving. Once she was out of the parking garage, she made haste and drove to the spaceport to get her ship and head to her mansion on Alkion. Just as she left, the rest of the knights from Boxer's squad and local law enforcement were on the way to her location. When she got to her ship, she quickly started it up and flew into space, jumping to hyperspace towards Alkion.

"She's dead. They killed her…my friend. My only friend in this f***** up world, and now…she's gone" said Lucretia, burying her face in her hands as the autopilot flew the ship. For the first time in years, she was alone…again.


End file.
